Scammers can send you text messages using your phone number. Scam texts such as the Revolut scam text often contain misspelled words or symbols, and poor grammar.
You may also be asked to respond quickly or provided with a link that leads to a suspect website. By opening these texts, you can download malware or incur unwanted charges.
Text messages purporting to be from your credit card or bank
Many banks allow their customers to opt-in to receive alerts regarding account activity via SMS. These can be anything from security and authentication messages (which require a password to access) to event and marketing notifications. Scammers take advantage of this feature to phish personal information or money. They can impersonate the bank or credit company and trick recipients to divulge sensitive information or click malicious links which lead to identity fraud, financial loss and unauthorized account access.
These scam texts usually claim that your account was compromised and you need to verify your ID to reactivate it. The fraudsters will dangle the prospect of losing your money or having your account closed to create fear and panic in their victims. Messages often ask recipients to click on a link or dial a number to confirm their identities. Once the victim provides their personal details, scammers will take full control of the account and can even transfer funds out of the bank or use it to purchase goods or services fraudulently.
The scammer will also use the same tactics to rob you of your hard-earned savings, promising bogus investment opportunities that are too good to be true and persuading you to invest your cash in them. They will try to lure you with slick, well-crafted emails and text messages that are difficult to spot as phishing.
These scams are difficult to avoid, as the crooks use numbers that look legitimate for their calls and texts. The real mobile number is often hidden behind a URL. The shortened URL can be accessed by searching for the sender’s name in a search engine. The search results will reveal the mobile phone number that the person actually uses. You can then check this to see if it is genuine or not.
Text messages purporting to be from a shipping company
We are all used to receiving text messages when we do business. Scammers can take advantage of this by impersonating companies to get your money or data. Text messages can claim that you must act right away, such as when you receive a fake credit card text, or that your prize has been won and you need to respond immediately to “claim it”. They use urgency to scare people into responding.
A scam text message that claims to come from a delivery service like FedEx or UPS is another common type. These phishing messages imitate delivery notification and ask you click on a hyperlink or call a phone number to update delivery or shipping preferences. You may be asked to pay a fee, or give your account details, if they claim there was a delivery problem. These scams tend to be more common during the holidays when people are anxiously waiting for their packages.
A real delivery service may send you such text messages but will not ask you for any information or payment prior to delivering your package. Most delivery companies do not ask for money transfers or to use a third party escrow company to guarantee delivery.
Text messages claiming to be from a friend or relative
You should ignore any text message that appears to be sent by a friend or family member. Scammers will use this tactic in order to trick people into providing sensitive information or money. If you respond or click on a link, you will be pulled into the scam and could end up having your information stolen.
SMS phishing (also called smishing), are fraudulent messages that are sent to mobile devices, requesting sensitive data or clicking on malicious hyperlinks. These messages impersonate legitimate entities, such as banks or government agencies, to lure victims into disclosing their personal data or clicking on malware-laden hyperlinks.
A common phishing scheme involves the alleged kidnapping a family member. The attacker will pretend they are a member of the family and demand payment for their release. This type of scam often targets elderly family members such as parents and grandparents. It is often accompanied by a sense urgency and a threatening voice.
Another common phishing scheme involves messages from “brand service”. Attackers pose as representatives of trusted brands and retailers, such as Amazon, Microsoft, or even the victim’s mobile provider. These attacks typically target users with a recent purchase or a suspicious activity on their account, and they use a sense of urgency to get victims to act quickly. They may also use real case numbers and technical terms to appear more genuine.
Some phishing scams can be harder to detect than others. An attacker can, for instance, spoof the sender number to make the message appear like it was sent from their phone number. In addition, the text message may contain bad grammar or spelling errors.
If you receive a message that appears from a relative or friend, do not respond or click any links. Instead, reach out to that friend or family member directly using a phone number you know is genuine and ask them whether they received the message. Report any suspicious text messages either to your mobile provider or the relevant anti-fraud organisation.
Text messages claiming to be from a company you do business with
If you receive a text message claiming to be sent by a company with whom you do business, such as a shipping company or utility provider, there are a couple of red flags that should be looked out for. Most reputable companies won’t ask for personal or financial details via text message. You should never be asked to click a hyperlink to verify or confirm that you are who you say you are. This type of scam can be especially tricky because it may seem like you’re doing the company a favor by responding.
Another red flag is if the text message includes a link that requires you to take action right away or if it creates a sense of urgency or pressure. Some of these links may download malware on your device or lead you to a fake site that collects your personal information, login IDs and passwords.
Finally, if the text message is asking you to provide your credit card or bank account information, this should be a clear red flag. Scammers use this information often to steal money or make unauthorized purchases on your behalf.
It’s best to ignore any suspicious text messages. This will confirm to the scammer your active number and that you could be a target. To report spam, contact the person directly via a verified email or phone number. Many carriers will also let you block numbers that are known to send this type of unwanted text. This can help you avoid future spam messages, but keep in mind that these are not a 100% guarantee of protection. Spammers are still able to create new short codes, and send you messages from unknown numbers. Consider using an SMS security tool that has filtering and blocking capabilities. These tools also block keywords or phrases commonly used in this type of scam.
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