Short Message Service (SMS)

Short Message Service (SMS) is a service available on most digital mobile phones that lets you send short text messages between mobile phones, handheld devices and even landline telephones. Text messaging, often called "texting," is sometimes known by different names, such as “i-mode mail” or “C-Mail” in Japan. Some security threats from SMS messaging include impersonation and unwanted messages, i.e., spam, and a recent trend among teenagers to send each other suggestive content, called ""sexting," has brought new risks to children's privacy and reputation.

With SMS, messages are sent to a Short Message Service Center (SMSC) that attempts to send the message to the recipient. If the user is not reachable at a given moment the SMSC will try again. SMS cannot recover lost or corrupted data, so there is no guarantee that a message will actually be delivered to its recipient. You may request delivery reports to get confirmation that your message has been received, but this notification is unreliable. You are more likely to experience delays or message loss when sending SMS between different networks.

SMS is widely used for delivering premium content such as news alerts, financial information, logos, and ringtones. Such SMS messages are also known as premium-rated short messages (PSMS). Subscribers are charged extra for receiving this premium content, and the amount is typically split between the mobile network operator and the content provider. PSMSs are also increasingly being used for "real-world" services. For example, some vending machines now allow you to pay for items by sending a premium-rated PSMS, so that the cost of the item is added to your phone bill.

Spamming cell phone users through SMS is a growing trend. Some companies, like TheSMSzone, offer controversial SMS spoofing services that allow users to send messages anonymously. With masked SMSs, you can impersonate someone else by making a message appear to originate from their phone. This opens up a whole new world of opportunities for spam and, possibly, mobile fraud or defamation.