Toronto police make arrests in text-message cyberattack, 13M disruptions reported - BERITAJA

The Toronto Police Service says it has made arrests successful what it’s calling a first-of-its-kind cybercrime investigation successful Canada involving a mobile “SMS blaster.”

Dubbed Project Lighthouse, the probe uncovered the usage of a blase instrumentality that mimics a morganatic compartment building to nonstop fraudulent matter messages to adjacent phones.

Police said successful a merchandise that the exertion could instrumentality thousands of devices into connecting to it, allowing scammers to nonstop messages that look to travel from trusted organizations specified arsenic banks aliases work providers.

The instrumentality was first detected successful downtown Toronto successful November 2025 and was later tracked moving crossed the Greater Toronto Area complete respective months.

During that time, tens of thousands of mobile devices connected to the system, pinch much than 13 cardinal web disruptions recorded, constabulary said.

In a news convention connected Thursday, Toronto constabulary explained that those disruptions could temporarily artifact entree to morganatic cellular networks, including emergency services for illustration 911.

Police executed hunt warrants astatine residences successful Markham and Hamilton connected March 31, seizing aggregate devices and physics evidence. Two group were arrested astatine the segment and a 3rd personification later turned themselves in.

The 3 individuals are facing dozens of charges, including fraud- and mischief-related offences.

“We’re beautiful assured that we person dealt pinch each of them [suspects] and location will beryllium nary further consequence successful the metropolis of Toronto for this,” Det. Sgt. Lindsay Riddell said Thursday.

“We’re still looking to place different victims. We’re not stopping here.

“It’s very communal for america to get scam matter messages. We’ve been successful speech pinch different organizations to spot who victims of this whitethorn beryllium arsenic well.”

Authorities are urging the nationalist not to click connected suspicious links aliases stock individual aliases login accusation done unsolicited messages.