The Michigan IT Experts

What is Smishing?

When cybercriminals use phishing scams, they aren’t using advanced technologies to crack their target’s digital defenses. Instead, they hack users by exploiting the assumptions, bad habits, and ignorance of the target to get them to release sensitive information.

Attackers circumvent cybersecurity measures by sending messages purporting to be from an authority figure or trusted contact, thereby convincing the user to undermine their protection. A notorious example of phishing is the email from the persecuted royal family, known as the "Nigerian Prince scam."

Smishing simply applies this principle to SMS instead of the usual email.

You could simply receive an SMS from a number that claims to be a financial institution or service provider, or even if you are doing business with that institution.

This message could contain details that confirm that the sender is who they purport to be, or it could go unnoticed because it is not the kind of message that most people expect to be phished through. More recently, many of these attacks have been sent under the ruse of being from authorities trying to share information about the COVID-19 pandemic.

There is a possibility that a link may be included in the message asking you to log in, but the problem is that this will lead you back to a fraudulent login page where the user’s actual login data is collected. It may prompt you to download a document that hides a variety of malicious programs, and suddenly the attacker has access to all your personal information, such as your phone number, email address, credit card numbers, bank account credentials and other sensitive information.

It's as simple as that.

Now, think for a moment about how much sensitive data you're likely to keep on your phones and what data a hacker might extract from them.

Spotting a Smishing Message

To prevent this from affecting your business, your entire team must be able to detect phishing attempts as soon as they are sent via SMS.

• Just as with suspected phishing emails, opening a suspected smishing message is extremely risky. If the sender is not familiar to you, do not open the message and definitely do not access any links included.
• If you cannot verify the legitimacy of the message, do not release sensitive information. If you receive a text message from Facebook informing you of a problem with your account, access Facebook separately to confirm before you resolve it.
• Some mobile devices can block texts, just like email clients can filter messages. So, make sure you block phone numbers that are suspected of phishing and apply settings that might be helpful.

As a final tip, you need to make sure your entire organization keeps an eye on security during the workday and that they know how to identify and respond to threats.

Of course, it does not hurt to apply certain preventative measures to your network, such as anti-virus, firewall protections, and others. We can help! NuTech Services can support your team in its IT requirements for security, productivity, and mobility. Find out about our services by contacting 810-230-9455.

Adobe Flash Player was deprecated back in 2017, but its official end of life date lands at the end of this year. What this means is that the software will gradually show more and more vulnerabilities that will not be mitigated, and therefore, the software will be far more susceptible to attack. Therefore, it is important that you check to make sure that anyplace that Flash Player would be—including your Internet browsers on your computers and mobile devices—to make sure that Flash isn’t still installed there.

Chances are pretty good that you haven’t used Flash Player for some time, simply because other options are more useful. Despite the platform once dominating the space, it will soon be little more than a liability. Unfortunately, this also means that any legacy software that relies on Flash will not function after the year ends and will also need to be removed.

Reach out to our team to find out how you can help keep vulnerabilities out of your IT by removing software when the time comes. Give us a call at 810-230-9455 today.

Past Flagship Phones

We should start by mentioning that some of the best options are actually purchasing flagship phones from the past couple of years. Most flagship smartphones from 2018 have the same specs as many of the mid-range phones today so they can be had at a budget price point. These devices tend to not only have comparable specs, they typically have superior build quality, run on better processors, and offer a user experience in line or better than the experience they would get on some budget smartphones. 

Some options to consider are the Samsung Galaxy s9 and s9+, LG’s V50 thinQ, the iPhone X, and the Google Pixel 3 XL. The only drawback of older phones is that they may not get the same amount of software upgrades that a newly-purchased phone would. Either way, you might get the most value out of an older flagship phone. 

Apple iPhone SE

The 2020 version of the iPhone SE still has the body of an iPhone 8, but the internals are upgraded and it presents users that can’t afford the $1,000 iPhone 12 Pro Max to get a new iPhone at a reasonable price point. The new SE runs iOS 13 on the A13 Bionic chipset to offer the user experience Apple users expect out of a budget iPhone. 

Apple iPhone SE (2020)
Body: Aluminum with Gorilla Glass front and back
Display: 4.7-inch Retina IPS LCD (~326 ppi)
OS: iOS 13
Chipset: Apple A13 Bionic 
Memory: 3 GB RAM
Expandable Memory: No
Cameras: Rear - 12 MP (wide); Front - 7 MP
Sounds: Stereo Speakers, No Headphone Jack
Battery (endurance rating): 4,500 mAh (87 hours)
Security: Fingerprint reader
Miscellaneous: Accelerometer, Gyrometer, Proximity, Compass, Siri assistant
Other versions: none

Samsung Galaxy A51

Samsung has 10 separate devices in their A-line. They range from the A01 to the A71, but the Galaxy A51 is priced at the upper end of the budget space. The A51 features a 6.5-inch Super AMOLED display, expandable storage, and a 3.5mm headphone jack. It is a great option if you are looking for a phone that gives you a decent user experience while also turning back the clock a bit. Available in Prism Crush Black, Prism Crush White, Prism Crush Blue, or Prism Crush Pink, the Galaxy A51 can be found on most major carriers and unlocked online.

Samsung Galaxy A51
Body: Plastic with Gorilla Glass 3 front, plastic back
Display: 6.5-inch Super AMOLED (~405 ppi)
OS: Android 10
Chipset: Octa-core Exynos 9611
Memory: 4-8 GB RAM
Expandable Memory: microSDXC
Cameras: Rear - 48 MP (wide), 12 MP (ultrawide, 5 MP (macro, 5 MP (depth); Front - 32 MP (wide)
Sounds: Loudspeaker, 3.5mm headphone jack
Battery (endurance rating): 4,000 mAh (86 hours)
Security: In-display fingerprint reader
Miscellaneous: Accelerometer, Gyrometer, Proximity, Barometer, Compass, Bixby assistant
Other versions: Samsung Galaxy A-series

Google Pixel 4a 5G

A 5G-capable budget smartphone, the Google Pixel 4a 5G features a 6.2-inch OLED display and has specs that are better than its price point would suggest. Its camera experience, specifically, is much better than phones found at this price. Available in Just Black and Clearly White, the Pixel 4a 5G is available in the Google store or from many major service carriers.

Google Pixel 4A 5G
Body: Plastic with Gorilla Glass 3 front and plastic back
Display: 6.2-inch OLED, HDR (~413 ppi)
OS: Android 11
Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon 765G
Memory: 6 GB RAM
Expandable Memory: No
Cameras: Rear - 12.2 MP (wide), 16 MP (ultra wide); Front - 8 MP (wide).
Sounds: Stereo Speakers, 3.5mm Headphone Jack
Battery: 3,885 mAh
Security: Fingerprint reader
Miscellaneous: Accelerometer, Gyrometer, Proximity, Barometer, Compass, Google Assistant
Other versions: 4G LTE version

Would you consider buying a budget device to use as your daily smartphone? Let us know in the comments section below.