‘This is my new number’ messenger scams continuing to work on victims

'Hey, my mobile phone is broken. This is my new number.' A message like this should trigger alarm bells immediately. — Photo: Bernd Diekjobst/dpa

STUTTGART: Your smartphone vibrates, showing a message from an unknown number – though you think you know the sender – it's your child. And it's an emergency, they are in trouble and are asking for money. They've lost their phone and need cash fast.

It's a scam – and spreading rapidly. Tens of thousands of cases were registered last year, with total losses running to the tens of millions, according to cybercrime experts.