In Colombia, fraudulent SMS messages mimicking insurance notifications and bank transfers are spreading during Semana Santa 2026. Authorities including the Fiscalía and National Police warn against clicking suspicious links to prevent data theft and account draining. They urge verifying information through official channels.
Cali, March 31, 2026. During Semana Santa, as mobile phone use rises for travel and payments, SMS messages pretending to be legitimate alerts about insurance activation or money transfers have emerged, containing malicious links.
The Fiscalía General labels this as smishing, an SMS-based fraud to steal confidential data, covered under Ley 1273 de 2009. A recent case, warned by Bogotá's Secretaría Distrital de Seguridad on March 7, impersonates the Bre-B payment system with fake transfer confirmations leading to bogus sites.
Risks encompass malware installation, identity theft, and abusive system access, per the Fiscalía's cybercrime guide. The National Police via CSIRT-PONAL and Superintendencia Financiera stress: avoid clicking links, enable two-factor authentication, and report via CAI Virtual.
Victims should immediately deactivate financial products, preserve evidence like screenshots, and notify their bank, the Superintendencia advises. Spoofing techniques make messages appear from official sources.
