A NEW study by the University of Cambridge has revealed that a major barrier intended to prevent fake social media accounts—the SMS phone verification process—can be bypassed for as little as a few cents per account, highlighting how easily digital disinformation campaigns can be mounted.
Reuters reported on Friday that while social media platforms employ a range of safeguards to combat fraud, the requirement to verify accounts via text message sent to a phone number is a key defensive measure.
However, researchers found that multiple on-demand SMS activation services, including SMSActivate, 5Sim, SMShub, and SMSPVA, offer disposable phone numbers for less than 30 U.S. cents each, allowing users to bypass these verification checks with minimal cost.
“The costs are absolutely trivial,” said Jon Roozenbeek, a Cambridge lecturer and co-author of the study published in the journal Science. Researchers analysed a year’s worth of data from the four services, calculating the cost of creating a fake account across various social media platforms worldwide.
Although SMS verification does not guarantee immunity from account suspension, Roozenbeek and his team validated their findings by creating test accounts with these disposable numbers. In some cases, accounts were successfully created every time, demonstrating the reliability of the service.
SMSPVA disputed being described as a “gray market” operator, asserting that it is a legally compliant company serving marketers, testers, and privacy-conscious users. The other services did not respond to requests for comment.
The study revealed significant cost variations depending on the country and platform. For instance, U.S. numbers could be obtained for 20 to 30 cents, while British, Russian, and Indonesian numbers were priced at 10 cents or less.
By contrast, SIMs in Japan and Australia, subject to stricter regulations, cost approximately $5 and $3, respectively. Costs also varied by platform; a U.S. number for WhatsApp cost around $3, whereas the same number for X (formerly Twitter) was just eight cents.
Roozenbeek explained that direct-messaging apps like WhatsApp demand higher prices due to stricter vetting processes, while platforms such as X were comparatively lax.
WhatsApp welcomed the study, acknowledging the challenges posed by services aimed at circumventing verification measures and emphasising that it relies on a combination of phone verification, technical, and behavioural signals to detect fraudulent activity. X did not provide comment.
Samuel Woolley, an academic from the University of Pittsburgh who reviewed the paper, stressed that SMS verification remains a “central standard for vetting” online accounts. He noted that the study effectively highlights the economic dynamics of disinformation, asserting, “It makes sense to follow the money.”
The findings underscore the low cost and accessibility of tools that can be exploited to create fake social media accounts, offering critical insight into the mechanics and economics of online disinformation. - December 12, 2025
