SMS is used for login codes and alerts, but text messages can be intercepted, spoofed, or redirected through phone-account attacks.
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Background for this topic.
SMS (Short Message Service) is a standardized mobile-network service for sending short text messages between phone numbers. It is widely used for person-to-person communication, service notifications, and one-time authentication codes, but messages are generally not end-to-end encrypted and may be visible to mobile operators or infrastructure handling delivery.
Security concerns include smishing—phishing delivered by text—along with sender-ID spoofing, malicious links, and social engineering. Account recovery and SMS-based multi-factor authentication can also be undermined when an attacker takes control of a phone number through SIM swapping, abuses carrier processes, or exploits signaling-system weaknesses. Organizations should avoid treating SMS as a high-assurance authentication factor where stronger options are practical, restrict sensitive content in texts, monitor number-change and authentication events, and train users to verify unexpected messages through a trusted channel.
Numerous Payoneer users in Argentina report waking up to find that their 2FA-protected accounts were hacked and funds stolen after receiving SMS OTP codes while they were sleeping. [...]
Shutting the Door on SMS OTPHackers have found ways to intercept SMS messages, so companies must explore more secure MFA options to ensure their users' safety. Your smartphone can still hold some different answers for secure OTP, but undoubtedly, SMS OTP is no longer safe. It’s time to flip the switch.