How you can protect yourself against fake ‘#’ text messages in Hong Kong

Hongkongers have been warned about a new phishing scam in which fraudsters cheated a victim out of HK$22,000 by sending fake text messages that included a hashtag prefix limited to government bodies and registered firms such as banks.

Police and experts said the scam involved the jamming of mobile signals with an electronic device to enable fake SMS messages with the “#” sign to be sent out.

The Post explains the scam and what phone users can do to protect themselves.

1. What happened?

Police said on Wednesday they had arrested a 23-year-old man this week in connection with 28 complaints concerning suspicious text messages purportedly from registered accounts of government departments, delivery firms and online payment systems.

In 2023, the Office of the Communications Authority (OFCA) introduced the hashtag prefix system to help residents identify genuine messages. More than 440 companies had registered for the “#” prefix by January this year.

However, the allegedly fake messages were sent out with a hashtag prefix. The messages included hyperlinks suspected to be related to a phishing operation.

A resident lost about HK$22,000 after inputting credit card details via one such link.