“Spam Text Pre-Blocking ‘X-ray Service’ Pilot Introduction
[Provided by the Ministry of Science and ICT. Redistribution and DB prohibited]”
(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Jo Seong-mi = The Ministry of Science and ICT and the Korea Internet & Security Agency (KISA) announced on the 8th that they will pilot-operate the ‘X-ray Pre-Blocking Service,’ which can stop malicious text messages, such as smishing, from the sending stage, starting from 9 a.m. on the 9th.
The blocking system is named ‘X-ray’ because it involves closely examining whether there are smishing inducement links included in malicious texts.
The Ministry of Science and ICT reported that the text reseller company SMTNT will be the first to implement the X-ray pre-blocking service.
If the text resellers or intermediaries that have introduced the pilot service identify a message as potentially malicious, they will request a smishing inspection from KISA before it is delivered to the user.
Until now, users reported spam texts to KISA via channels like KakaoTalk’s Safety Home when received, and based on this, the sender’s number and internet address (URL) were blocked.
The Ministry explained the reason for the introduction by stating, “However, with the massive release of malicious texts, it was inconvenient for recipients to have to report and deal with each case individually, and there were instances of falling for smishing by mistake, thus necessitating more effective measures.”
The Ministry also added that they plan to expand the X-ray service to block malicious texts in the future.