No, Your Toll Payment Is Not Overdue

The podcast episode of "The Journal" investigates a widespread billion-dollar scam targeting cell phone users across the U.S. and globally. The scam involves text messages about fake overdue toll payments, leading victims to enter their credit card information on phishing websites. This information is then used by Chinese organized crime, who employ SIM farms to send spam texts and mules in the U.S. to make fraudulent purchases with stolen credit cards. The episode explores the technical aspects of the scam, the challenges in stopping it due to jurisdictional issues and the constant innovation of the criminals, and the roles that telecom companies, banks, and law enforcement could play in combating it. The key takeaway is to avoid clicking on suspicious links and to be cautious when prompted to provide financial information urgently.