There have been reports of SIM swap damage in Japan over the past year or so. A Japanese politician recently posted on his own X that he was a victim of SIM swap.
In English
My phone was hijacked 5 days ago and my son’s phone was hijacked 3 days ago, both of them changed carriers from “Ymobile” to “Softbank”, but today I was able to get them back to “Ymobile” at no financial cost to me. I don’t feel safe because the perpetrators are still in possession of my counterfeit miner card, but I am just waiting for the police to arrest them.
- “Y mobile” and “Softbak” are Japanese phone carrier
What was happening to him?
A criminal with malicious intent impersonated this politician and changed his career without permission.
Although carrier changes and other important procedures require strict identification, the SIM was stolen by a third party through some means or because the carrier’s staff failed to adequately verify the identity of the person who made the change.
As a result, they were used fraudulently in mobile payments.
Fortunately, the politician immediately noticed the problem, stopped the credit card, shared the situation with the carrier’s store, and took immediate countermeasures, resulting in a total of only about 4,000 yen in unauthorized use.
How Should We Face a SIM Swap?
The SIM swap must first impersonate the individual and from there deceive the telecommunications carrier.
There is no defense other than strict identity verification, and there may be limits to how careful individuals can be.
