VodafoneThree blocked 2 million scam bank SMSes since August 2025

VodafoneThree said a UK pilot launched with banks and industry groups has blocked more than 2 million fraudulent financial SMS messages since August 2025.

VodafoneThree said the pilot used bespoke rules added to existing SMS firewalls to distinguish legitimate bank communications from fraudulent messages. The operator said the system was developed with Barclays, the Mobile Ecosystem Forum, and Cyber Defence Alliance, a threat intelligence member organisation.

VodafoneThree said other banks that signed up to the trial include TSB and The Co-operative Bank. The company said the process used in the trial delivered a 25% improvement over previous methods for blocking SMS messages that falsely claimed to be from customers' banks.

Barclays head of economic crime Paul Davis said Authorised Push Payment scams originating through SMS increased 40% year on year in 2025. He said intelligence sharing between banks, telecoms providers, and industry bodies can help stop suspicious messages before they reach customers while allowing genuine bank messages to be delivered.