Preventing online scams involves a battle of the latest technology in which scammers are usually way ahead compared to those going after them such as the regulators.

With quick upgrades, those behind online rackets outwit authorities while continuing to victimize people.

The large-scale anonymous crime would need a multi-stakeholder approach that involves government, law enforcement, business, consumers and other partners who must work together.

The Telecommunication Standardization Sector of the International Telecommunication Union had recognized the growing threat that scams such as short message service phishing pose to countries, telecoms operators and mobile phone and internet users.

The ITU-T then published its Supplement on guidelines on countermeasures against short message service phishing and smishing attacks to help combat scams while encouraging awareness.

The ITU-T defines SMS phishing as "the attempt to acquire sensitive information such as usernames, passwords and credit card details for malicious reasons, by masquerading as a trustworthy entity in an electronic communication."

Efforts by the United Nations' ICT agency to control the spread of cybercrime and fraud said the struggle against the illicit online practices worsened during the Covid-19 pandemic as more people shifted to online transactions.

In the United States, non-profit Public Interest Research Group reported robo-text figures have soared from about 1 billion per month in 2021 to 12 billion in June of 2022.

The US Federal Trade Commission also reported that a total of $137 million was lost in 2021 from fraud connected to text scams.

"The sheer scale of the problem requires an equally aggressive pushback," Globe chief information security officer Anton Bonifacio said.

He underscored the shared responsibility to put protective measures in place, increase vigilance and create more awareness.

Globe's involvement in the battle against scammers start through encouraging customers to report spam and scam messages on its Stop Spam web portal. Android phone users are also urged to set up spam filters on their devices.