SK Telecom said on January 13 that it blocked approximately 1.1 billion attempted telecom fraud cases in 2025, including voice spam, voice phishing calls, and scam text messages. The figure represents a 35% increase from the previous year, reflecting the company’s expanded use of artificial intelligence across its spam and phishing prevention systems.
According to the company, the increase was driven by the full-scale deployment of AI technologies throughout the detection and response process. Last year, SK Telecom introduced an AI model based on call pattern analysis that proactively identifies and blocks suspected voice phishing numbers even if they have not been reported to relevant authorities.
As a result, the number of blocked voice spam and voice phishing calls surged 119% year on year to 250 million cases. Blocked scam text messages also rose 22% to 850 million cases.
SK Telecom has also applied its proprietary AI-based financial fraud detection technology, ScamVanguard, to multiple customer-facing services, including the bait-message alert feature of PASS spam filtering and the AI safety blocking function of its A.dot phone service. These features are designed to detect scam calls and messages that impersonate financial institutions or personal contacts and to provide advance warning notifications to users.
In particular, the A.Dot phone service supports real-time AI voice phishing detection during calls. By analyzing risk signals while a call is in progress, the service immediately alerts users through on-screen pop-up messages and audible warnings, helping to reduce potential damage.
Looking ahead, SK Telecom plans to further expand the application of AI across all stages of spam and phishing prevention this year. To counter increasingly sophisticated phishing threats, the company aims to build a one-stop response system that automatically detects, collects, and analyzes malicious apps using AI, linking threat blocking directly to damage prevention. The goal is to further strengthen the security of its telecom services and enhance customer protection.
“Despite continuous efforts, illegal telecom fraud, including voice phishing, is becoming increasingly sophisticated,” said Young-kyu Son, head of Security Governance at SK Telecom. “We will continue to reinforce our technological and institutional response capabilities and actively cooperate with the government and related organizations to eradicate voice phishing and illegal spam.”
