[REVISION HISTORY]

France crackdown on phone and SMS scams

Updated 1 time since CLSTR started tracking revisions of this situation.

What changed

2026-07-27 11:28 UTC → 2026-08-21 05:24 UTC · added ~~removed~~

In late July ~~2026~~ 2026, French officials highlighted a surge in fraud targeting mobile users. On July 25, authorities described a widespread smishing campaign that begins with a casual greeting, then directs recipients to a fake delivery site to steal personal data. Simultaneously, the startup Moderering offered its ~~AI‑driven~~ AI-driven tool for detecting illegal online content to French and EU agencies at no cost, aiming to speed up investigations of digital abuse. Two days later, the Lyon judicial court and the Rhône gendarmerie issued separate alerts. The court warned of phone calls that spoof court numbers and demand personal details, while the gendarmerie cautioned motorists about fake ~~toll‑payment~~ toll-payment SMS links. Both agencies urged the public to verify any request through official channels and to avoid clicking suspicious links. ~~Together, these alerts show an ongoing French response to~~ By mid-August, authorities reported even more sophisticated schemes. In the Gers department, a wave of ~~phone‑~~ fake bank advisor scams emerged, where callers posing as security department members stole between 400 and ~~SMS‑based scams, combining public warnings with the deployment~~ 3,000 euros from victims. Additionally, police in Maine-et-Loire warned of a new ~~technology~~ form of smishing utilizing artificial intelligence. These scams include highly realistic, AI-generated images of delivery drivers to ~~detect illicit content and support investigations.~~ build credibility, tricking recipients into clicking links to pay fraudulent customs fees or reschedule deliveries.

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