AT&T is rolling out a protection called Wireless Account Lock to prevent unauthorized changes to mobile accounts in an effort to combat SIM swapping, a form of account hijacking.
SIM swapping, or port-out fraud, has been a longstanding issue that has affected wireless carriers and their customers. Scammers use this technique to swap out SIM cards, gaining access to accounts and potentially stealing funds, as seen in a case involving cryptocurrency theft.
The new Wireless Account Lock feature aims to prevent SIM-swap scams by restricting changes to SIM cards until the lock is deactivated. This protection is available in the myAT&T mobile app settings.
AT&T's Wireless Account Lock follows similar protection services introduced by T-Mobile and Verizon. The move comes amid increasing efforts to combat unauthorized SIM swaps, with the Federal Communications Commission implementing rules to make such scams harder to execute.