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> The Smishing Triad network sends up to 100,000 scam texts per day globally This should not be possible. I guess the iMessage scams used e2ee, but the SMS sca

> The Smishing Triad network sends up to 100,000 scam texts per day globally This should not be possible. I guess the iMessage scams used e2ee, but the SMS scams should have been caught. It would be great if there was law enforcement that competently handled cybercrime, or at least triaged it. More broadly, and at the risk of creating another TLA, the US needs a Blue Team version of the NSA. In other words, identify critical infrastructure, figure out how it can be hacked, and require that companies fix the issues. Use national security if need be. Banks have to undergo stress tests to prove they are solvent, there is no reason that critical infrastructure should be able to leave their doors unlocked.

mcmcmc 2y ago
Congrats, you’ve proposed the already existing Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency
- shiroiushi 2y ago
  Did he? He said: >It would be great if there was law enforcement that competently handled cybercrime, or at least triaged it. [emphasis mine] I'm not sure CISA fits that definition.
  - 8organicbits 2y ago
    CISA isn't even a law enforcement agency [1]. The parent was presumably talking about the second paragraph. [1] https://www.cisa.gov/news-events/news/looking-back-chart-our-path-forward https://www.cisa.gov/news-events/news/looking-back-chart-our...
- barryrandall 2y ago
  If CISA is producing a deterrent effect, only LIGO can measure it.
fullspectrumdev 2y ago
Spam filtering for SMS is still not particularly broadly implemented by network operators apparently. I remember during Covid there was a few startups in that space trying to work with MVNO’s to get a foothold in the market, but don’t think any of that went anywhere.
- newsclues 2y ago
  Network operators make money from scam industry there are not incentivized to deal with the problem beyond offering additional paid services
  - LinuxBender 2y ago
    I can vouch for this. There were a myriad of cases I brought to my boss, the director of operations for a major wireless carrier that was absorbed into another one that still exists. "They are paying their bills, right?" was all I could get. I had text messages scrolling on my desk in a different workspace all day. Agencies would have me grep for homicide threats between gangs but that's about it. I was not only required to support spammers and scammers, but also required to make sure everyone's messages got through quickly, including those that were overloading my gateways from SS7 links controlled by obvious scammers. I was not allowed to get the hicap folks to decom nefarious SS7 links. This was a long time ago and I doubt the situation improved.
    - bluGill 2y ago
      Congress is hearing complaints and so getting interested in this. Thus providing incentive. Of course the incentive to carriers is to stop the scams congress will be interested in, while allowing the rest.
    - ryandrake 2y ago
      > I can vouch for this. There were a myriad of cases I brought to my boss, the director of operations for a major wireless carrier that was absorbed into another one that still exists. "They are paying their bills, right?" was all I could get. I would have loved to ask him if he'd do business with Stormfront or ISIS as long as they were "paying their bills." It's not just the top of the food chain, these middle managers are all morally bankrupt, too.
2OEH8eoCRo0 2y ago
> It would be great if there was law enforcement that competently handled cybercrime, or at least triaged it. They do. There's just a lot of it.
WillAdams 2y ago
Maybe something like: https://www.npr.org/2024/05/31/1197959218/fbi-phone-company-anom https://www.npr.org/2024/05/31/1197959218/fbi-phone-company-...

mcmcmc 2y ago

Congrats, you’ve proposed the already existing Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency

shiroiushi 2y ago
Did he? He said: >It would be great if there was law enforcement that competently handled cybercrime, or at least triaged it. [emphasis mine] I'm not sure CISA fits that definition.
- 8organicbits 2y ago
  CISA isn't even a law enforcement agency [1]. The parent was presumably talking about the second paragraph. [1] https://www.cisa.gov/news-events/news/looking-back-chart-our-path-forward https://www.cisa.gov/news-events/news/looking-back-chart-our...
barryrandall 2y ago
If CISA is producing a deterrent effect, only LIGO can measure it.

fullspectrumdev 2y ago

Spam filtering for SMS is still not particularly broadly implemented by network operators apparently. I remember during Covid there was a few startups in that space trying to work with MVNO’s to get a foothold in the market, but don’t think any of that went anywhere.

newsclues 2y ago
Network operators make money from scam industry there are not incentivized to deal with the problem beyond offering additional paid services
- LinuxBender 2y ago
  I can vouch for this. There were a myriad of cases I brought to my boss, the director of operations for a major wireless carrier that was absorbed into another one that still exists. "They are paying their bills, right?" was all I could get. I had text messages scrolling on my desk in a different workspace all day. Agencies would have me grep for homicide threats between gangs but that's about it. I was not only required to support spammers and scammers, but also required to make sure everyone's messages got through quickly, including those that were overloading my gateways from SS7 links controlled by obvious scammers. I was not allowed to get the hicap folks to decom nefarious SS7 links. This was a long time ago and I doubt the situation improved.
  - bluGill 2y ago
    Congress is hearing complaints and so getting interested in this. Thus providing incentive. Of course the incentive to carriers is to stop the scams congress will be interested in, while allowing the rest.
  - ryandrake 2y ago
    > I can vouch for this. There were a myriad of cases I brought to my boss, the director of operations for a major wireless carrier that was absorbed into another one that still exists. "They are paying their bills, right?" was all I could get. I would have loved to ask him if he'd do business with Stormfront or ISIS as long as they were "paying their bills." It's not just the top of the food chain, these middle managers are all morally bankrupt, too.

2OEH8eoCRo0 2y ago

> It would be great if there was law enforcement that competently handled cybercrime, or at least triaged it. They do. There's just a lot of it.

WillAdams 2y ago

Maybe something like: https://www.npr.org/2024/05/31/1197959218/fbi-phone-company-anom https://www.npr.org/2024/05/31/1197959218/fbi-phone-company-...