SK Telecom, hereafter referred to as SKT, announced on the 16th that it discovered and blocked 2,610 malicious applications (apps) in cooperation with the Korean National Police Agency from December of last year to March of this year.
SKT confirmed customers suspected of installing malicious apps and provided related information to the Korean National Police Agency. The police visited the victims directly to delete the malicious apps. This is estimated to have prevented approximately 107 billion won in damages. The average damage per case of voice phishing last year was around 41 million won.
SKT first blocked SMS phishing texts containing links to distribute malicious apps through analysis based on artificial intelligence (AI) models. Malicious domains and Internet Protocol (IP) addresses provided by the Korea Internet and Security Agency (KISA) were also tracked and blocked.
The Korean National Police Agency secured information on users suspected of installing malicious apps, analyzed through an AI model from SKT, through the execution of search warrants. Based on this, they guided efforts to visit the victims and assist in deleting the installed malicious apps.
SKT stated, “The cooperation with the Korean National Police Agency has significant meaning as we directly reached out to customers concerned about the risks of malicious app installation, effectively preventing secondary financial fraud damage,” and noted, “Malicious apps demand excessive access to contacts, text messages, and location, leading to the theft of personal information, and various financial fraud damages like small payment scams and non-face-to-face account openings are on the rise, so we urge our customers to remain particularly vigilant through various channels.”
Since July of last year, SKT has been providing a “phishing SMS AI detection alert service” for customers who have agreed to service usage. By December of last year, approximately 9,700 phishing texts had been detected, preventing customer damage.
According to the Korean National Police Agency, the damage amount from voice phishing through malicious apps and other means increased from 84.5 billion won last year to 44.72 billion won in 2023. Kwak Byeong-il, head of the Korean National Police Agency's Drug Organization Crime Investigation Division, said, “Recently, phishing scenarios impersonating card delivery have emerged, and voice phishing organizations are continuously attempting new methods, so one should never access unknown links or install suspicious apps.”
Son Young-kyu, head of SKT's Information Security Office, stated, “We will continue to collaborate with the Korean National Police Agency to ensure that the number of customers suffering from damages due to malicious app installations continues to decrease,” and added, “In the future, we will also take action to prevent various voice phishing damages through public-private cooperation.”