Canadian police have arrested three men linked to what authorities are calling the first fraudulent text message scam of its kind in the country, a scam they warn “highlights an emerging threat to both public safety and financial security.”
The scheme involved a device that the Toronto Police Service identified as an SMS sender. According to the policeThis device imitates legitimate cell towers, tricking nearby cell phones into automatically connecting to it. Once connected, the SMS sender can send fraudulent text messages that appear to come from trusted institutions such as banks or service providers. Those messages often include links to websites designed to trick victims into handing over personal information, including financial credentials and passwords.
Schemes like this are not entirely new. Similar devices have been used in other countries in recent years, including the United Kingdomhe Philippinesand Greece. But Toronto police say this is the first known case involving this technology in Canada.
“What makes this particularly concerning is the scale and impact,” Deputy Chief Rob Johnson said at a news conference. press conference on April 23. “This was not targeted at a single individual or company. It had the ability to reach thousands of devices at once. And beyond the financial risk, there are real implications for public safety.”
Police said when phones are connected to these fraudulent devices and diverted from legitimate networks, it can interfere with the victim’s ability to make calls, including contacting emergency services.
Toronto police began investigating the scheme in November 2025 after a security partner alerted them to an alleged SMS sender operating in downtown Toronto. The investigation, which involved coordination with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police’s National Cybercrime Coordination Centre, York Regional Police and Hamilton police, ultimately determined that the devices were mobile and operated from the rear of the vehicles.
“We believe tens of thousands of devices were connected to the blaster for several months,” Detective Sergeant Lindsay Riddell said at the news conference. “We also identified more than 13 million network outages where devices were unable to properly connect to legitimate cell towers. This is significant because during those times, access to services like 911 could be affected.”
Police executed search warrants last month that led to the arrest of two men. A third man turned himself in last week. The three men have been collectively charged with 44 offences, including fraud and mischief.
“This is a clear example of how cybercrime is becoming more advanced, more mobile and harder to detect and why law enforcement must continue to evolve along with it,” Johnson said.
Police say they are confident the threat posed by the SMS sender in Toronto no longer persists. Still, they urge the public to remain vigilant, avoid clicking on links in unsolicited text messages and to report if they believe they have been victims of the scam. Authorities have not yet determined how much money may have been lost in the scheme.
