260,000 Hit by Cryptocurrency Wallet Smishing Scam in South Korea

South Korean authorities have launched an investigation into a recent smishing scam that targeted approximately 260,000 individuals. The incident occurred on September 12 when malicious text messages were sent in bulk to unspecified people, prompting them to install an 'updated cryptocurrency wallet'.

The messages were allegedly sent through a text message forwarding agency used by the marketing department of a complex shopping mall in Sasang-gu, Busan. According to reports, someone gained unauthorized access to the agency's account and sent the malicious texts at 10:48 AM on September 12.

The police believe that the scam was designed to steal virtual assets from victims who clicked on the attached link. To prevent further damage, authorities secured the text message transmission details from the agency and took measures such as blocking access to the account.

Police are currently investigating the incident, including tracking down the person who illegally accessed the account. The complex shopping mall had outsourced its text messaging operations to the agency for informing customers about discount events and other promotions.