Being able to verify the names or brands behind the messages we receive on our mobiles in order to avoid scams. The National Commission of Markets and Competition (CNMC) has approved the regulation of an alias registry that will allow verification that the senders in SMS, MMS or RCS messages sent to Spanish numbers are really who they claim to be. As the public entity has explained, the objective of the measure is to restore user confidence in electronic communications through messages. It will also serve to strengthen the fight against fraud attempts through identity theft, an increasingly frequent practice. From June 7, messages from all those who falsify their identity will begin to be blocked.

They used advertisements to adopt or buy puppies. They asked for an initial payment for the animal and then, little by little, demanded further transfers for vaccinations, transport, microchipping, a cage... When the string of payments ended, they vanished, and the client never saw a trace of the pet they had bought. This was just one of the fraudulent activities carried out by the criminal network that the Civil Guard has dismantled in Vizcaya, in the Basque Country. The organization used multiple phone lines, bank accounts, and false or stolen identity documents to deceive buyers. Three members of the clan even controlled an octogenarian man, forcing him to beg. They isolated the elderly man from his family and also used his information to open bank accounts with which they committed scams exceeding €36,000. Furthermore, the illegal activity didn't end there. As detailed by the Civil Guard, the criminal group also fraudulently received social benefits—guaranteed income and minimum living income. In fact, the police force estimates that the clan improperly received over €560,000 in social benefits. Finally, they used the money obtained through scams and illegal social benefits to invest up to €55,000 in cryptocurrencies.

The proliferation of scams and investment frauds based on love and a supposed friendship has prompted intervention from the Spanish National Securities Market Commission (CNMV). The Spanish stock market regulator has decided to issue a warning given the high number of such cases. Although they don't reach such a specific segmentation or categorization by "love scams," data from the Ministry of the Interior reveals that last year there were 412,850 complaints of computer scams or cyber scams, of which 72,139 were related to such scams. While these figures are lower than those of 2023, they are significantly higher than in previous years, such as 267,011 in Spain as a whole and 61,607 in Catalonia in 2022, and 335,995 and 61,607, respectively, demonstrating that... According to the CNMV (Spanish National Securities Market Commission), these types of scams that appeal to feelings and emotions "usually begin very innocently: you meet someone online through social media, a dating app, an investment WhatsApp group, or even through a text message saying 'something'." The thing is, "before you know it, you're exchanging messages every day," without ever physically seeing the person. A recurring element is that the scammer appears to be wealthy, travels a lot, and has everything thanks to investing in cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, gold, or other currencies. And therein lies one of the key elements: they are willing to teach how to achieve the same lifestyle they supposedly enjoy through recommended apps, accompanied by charts and data that reflect enormous returns. The problem is that when the person who is convinced wants to withdraw their money, there's no way to do so, and the supposed friend has disappeared. The CNMV (Spanish National Securities Market Commission) advises reporting these incidents immediately to the Mossos d'Esquadra (Catalan Police), the National Police, or the Guardia Civil (Spanish Civil Guard), and assures that anyone can be a victim. The agency offers numerous tips to avoid these scams. In fact, even video calls cannot serve as cover because the most experienced perpetrators of these practices can resort to artificial intelligence (AI). In short, one of the main recommendations is to ignore all messages, however affectionate and friendly they may be, that come from someone you don't know.

He phishing It is one of the most common fraudulent practices on the Internet. The word, which is a derivation of fishing (fishing(in English), refers to identity theft to gain access to personal information or banking data. It is not, therefore, a cyberattack or other complicated computer operations, but rather a traditional type of scam, but online.

In recent hours, reports have gone viral suggesting that the Bank of Spain had issued a warning warning the public against paying rent via bank transfer. According to reports published by various media outlets, the Spanish financial supervisory body has detected an increase in the number of scams involving this type of payment. However, this warning never existed, and the central bank has denied the information circulating online to the ARA. "Payment by bank transfer is normal and poses no risk in itself," sources at the agency assure.

"In 2025, cyber scams will increase," Laura Caballero, director of the Catalan Cybersecurity Agency, categorically predicts. Last year's massive corporate data leaks and the use of artificial intelligence lead the Catalan government agency to predict an upward trend in digital scams. It is in this context that the Agency has launched a two-pronged initiative: a cybersecurity alert channel via WhatsApp and an online mailbox where citizens who detect cyber scams can report them.