By Francis Earl Cueto, Manila Times
GLOBE Telecoms on Monday said they were able to block 32.2 million scam and spam text messages with clickable links in just two weeks after enforcing its measure against all person-to-person SMS with links.
In a statement, Globe said that the figure covered September 28 to October 13 when it started enforcing the measures, which resulted in blocking 2.4 million SMS with clickable links on average every day within that period.
"The amount of text messages with clickable links we blocked within just about two weeks shows the staggering number of spam and scam SMS that disrupt and threaten customers every day. This is empirical proof that our security measure was warranted," Anton Bonifacio, Globe's chief information security officer, said.
Globe implemented this measure in response to growing concern over escalating spam and scam messages, particularly those containing mobile users' full names.
The statement also said that Globe has logged a new record in blocked spam and scam messages, with a total of 1.3 billion from January to end September. This exceeds the 2021 total of 1.15 billion.
Under the new security measure, all person-to-person SMS with clickable links from all networks are blocked.
This has forced fraudsters to find new ways to craft their scam messages, showing that the blocking measure has been effective.
"We reiterate our call on our customers to remain vigilant as fraudsters will continue to find ways to circumvent measures that aim to thwart them. Do not engage with SMS from anonymous sources making enticing offers," Bonifacio said.
Globe has spent $20 million or P1.1 billion to date to step up its spam and scam SMS detection and blocking system.
