Travelers warned about ‘smishing’ scam that could put your personal information at risk

People travelling through certain US states are being warned of a new scam which is targeting people.

You have probably heard of a 'phishing' scam, where a con artist sends out fraudulent emails with the aim of trying to get money or data off a mark.

The emails can be spotted with a few telltale signs such as dodgy-looking links or an urgent tone warning of 'penalties'.

Sometimes they can even pose as authorities such as police or local government imposing 'fines' on people.

While they can be spotted a phishing email will deliberately cast a wide net, sending a message out to thousands of recipients or more.

Only a handful of those need to be taken in for the scheme to pay off.

Once someone clicks the link the scammers could get access to data for bank accounts, private information, and other people's details, all of which are lucrative on the black market.

So that's phishing, but what about 'smishing'?

Examples of how a smishing sam might try to trick you (stock image). (synthetick / Getty)

As the name suggests this is broadly the same in its scope as phishing, but instead of an email the scam is carried out by text message.

This gives it the name, with the 'sm' referring to an SMS message.

One example of a smishing scam is currently being observed by the FBI and sees the scammers posing as a 'toll service' telling unwitting travellers that they owe money.

A public service announcement from the FBI includes an example of the scam text, which reads: "We've noticed an outstanding toll amount of $12.51 on your record. To avoid a late fee of $50.00, visit [fraudulent web address] to settle your balance."

The message is a classic of the psychological tactics employed by smishing and phishing scams.

Be careful when you receive an unexpected message. (Tim Robberts / Getty)

This can often include posing as an authority figure and creating a sense of urgency by warning of further penalties if you don't react.

Other tactics could be posing as delivery services, a 'honeytrap', or in some cases even as someone's child saying that they've 'lost their phone'.

Given that we are reliant on the smartphone for huge parts of our lives, it also makes sense to target them as they are filled with valuable data about us.

Fortunately there are some measures you can take to protect yourself, with one being that if you're not expecting a text message about something, for example a delivery, then it's a scam.

You should also never click links in strange messages, and delete any suspicious messages.

It's also a good idea to keep whatever operating system you use up-to-date, and use multi-factor identification on particularly sensitive things such as banks, health records, or social media accounts.