SMS blaster scam texts – Man jailed after first UK seizure of rogue mobile antenna
Key Points
- Preston man Mohammed Faiyaz Iqbal jailed for three years and eight months over SMS blaster fraud
- Police found the device hidden in his van at the Trafford Centre in May 2024, the first UK seizure of its kind
- The blaster acted as a rogue mobile antenna, sending fake Royal Mail texts directly to nearby phones
- Officers recovered 7,859 compromised card details and three counterfeit UK driving licences
- Suspicious texts can be reported for free by forwarding them to 7726
Mohammed Faiyaz Iqbal, 43, of Preston has been jailed for three years and eight months after police found an SMS blaster hidden in his van at the Trafford Centre.
The Dedicated Card and Payment Crime Unit (DCPCU) said the seizure in May 2024 marked the first time UK law enforcement had encountered an SMS blaster. The device works as a rogue mobile antenna, bypassing network security and broadcasting text messages directly to phones nearby.
Officers arrested Iqbal on 24 May 2024 while he sat in the van in the shopping centre car park. They had identified the vehicle as being in the same area as a large volume of fraudulent SMS messages reaching members of the public.
A search of the front of the van turned up multiple mobile phones. In the rear, officers found the blaster system concealed within purpose-built wooden compartments, complete with power sources, Wi-Fi components and aerials fitted into the roof.
The equipment was switched on and running in conjunction with applications on the mobile phones when police found it. The messages impersonated legitimate organisations, including Royal Mail, and were designed to trick recipients into handing over payment and personal details.
Examination of Iqbal’s phones revealed 7,859 compromised payment card details. A further search of his home address uncovered additional compromised banking material and three counterfeit UK driving licences, which he used to open impersonation bank accounts for laundering criminal proceeds.
Iqbal faced five charges: fraud by false representation, possession of articles for use in fraud, acquiring and possessing criminal property, possession of false identity documents, and unauthorised use of wireless telegraphy apparatus.
He pleaded guilty at his first hearing on 9 March 2026 and was sentenced on 28 August 2026. The judge set the appropriate sentence at five years and six months, then reduced it by one third to reflect the guilty plea.
“This case demonstrates the evolving nature of fraud and the lengths offenders will go to in order to target victims at scale,” said Andrew Little, detective chief inspector at the DCPCU.
“The seizure of this equipment is a significant step in disrupting emerging threats that seek to bypass established telecommunications safeguards,” he added.
“While this conviction is a victory for fraud-fighting efforts, it also shows the lengths perpetrators will go to in order to cause Brits financial and emotional harm,” said Murray Mackenzie, director of fraud prevention at Virgin Media O2.
Virgin Media O2 said it has blocked more than 1 billion scam texts to date and urged the public to report suspicious calls and texts for free to 7726.
The DCPCU worked with mobile network operators BT, Virgin Media O2, VodafoneThree and Sky, alongside the National Cyber Security Centre and Ofcom, to secure the conviction. The unit is staffed by City of London Police, the Met Police and UK Finance, and UK Finance funds it in full.
How to report scam texts
Most UK phone providers take part in a scheme that lets customers forward suspicious text messages to 7726 free of charge.
The provider can then investigate where the text came from and arrange to block or ban the sender if it proves malicious.
Anyone who has lost money or shared financial information as a result of a smishing text should notify their bank immediately.
You can also report it to Report Fraud at reportfraud.police.uk or on 0300 123 2040, or to Police Scotland on 101 for those in Scotland.
