I've been noticing some odd behavior on my four-year-old Samsung phone. I keep receiving text messages with download links labeled "no subject" from people I know, and they've all said they haven't sent anything. I'm starting to wonder if I might have malware or something. I haven't clicked on these links out of caution, but I'm definitely curious about what they might be. My phone has McAfee antivirus installed, and it's saying everything is fine, but I use this phone for banking, so it has me worried. What could be causing these messages? Is there a safe way to check these links?
1 Answer
You probably don't have malware on your phone. It’s highly unlikely to get a virus unless you’re sideloading apps. What you’re experiencing is called phishing SMS. Scammers can spoof numbers, which is why you’re getting these texts from people you know, even if they didn't send anything. My advice? Just ignore those messages; they'll likely stop after a while. Your device should be fine regardless of these texts.
How do they spoof their numbers? Wouldn’t they need access to my contacts?