Don’t reply SMS’ from unknown sources: ITSSL

People should vigilant enough to prevent being fooled by scammers who send SMS messages saying the subscriber is a prize winner and requesting that he or she pay a fee to claim the prize, Information Technology Society of Sri Lanka (ITSSL) said yesterday.

ITSSL Chairman Rajeev Yasiru Kuruwitage said a number of people had complained to the ITSSL after they had fallen prey to such dubious schemes.

"Scammers pretending to be representatives of popular mobile phone companies and leading car manufacturers send SMS messages to local mobile phone users saying they have won huge cash prizes," he said. “They say “your phone number has won 1,000,000 Pounds Sterling in the BMW 2019 promo, UK and request the subscribers to send their personal details such as addresses, age and occupation to a given email address.

Mr. Kuruwitage said the scammers request proof of identity and then request that a certain amount be paid as Customs charges to the 'Bitcoin Wallet' before the prize could be collected.

A Bitcoin Wallet is a software programme where Bitcoins are stored. Bitcoin wallets facilitate sending and receiving Bitcoins and give ownership of the Bitcoin balance to the user.

He said people should not to reply to SMS messages from unknown international numbers and not deposit money to any bank account via Bitcoin Wallets. (Chaturanga Samarawickrama)