Thai authorities have apprehended a 35-year-old Chinese national accused of deploying a sophisticated smishing operation in Bangkok. The suspect used a mobile radio base station installed in his vehicle to send over a million fraudulent SMS messages targeting Advanced Info Service (AIS) users, Thailand's largest internet service provider.

The arrest took place following reports of a surge in scam messages between November 11 and 13. The suspect’s van, equipped with a high-powered SMS transmitter, was intercepted by law enforcement. The transmitter had been configured to simulate AIS signals, enabling the suspect to bombard unsuspecting users with phishing messages.

The messages tricked victims into clicking malicious links, potentially exposing their personal and financial information.

Officials revealed that the suspect was part of a larger network exploiting local regulations. The group registered companies in Thailand to obtain legitimate phone numbers, which they used to target Thai citizens with spam messages and calls.

In a related operation, Thai police announced the dismantling of a large-scale scam network responsible for over 730 million fraudulent calls. The network exploited Thai “02” phone numbers, registered under the guise of legitimate businesses, to impersonate organizations and deceive victims into providing sensitive information.