HOW TO: Spot (and Report) Spam Text Messages
You owe toll money to the state of Ohio. Click here to pay before your license is revoked.
Congratulations! Your resume is outstanding and we’d love to hire you for a remote position making $200/hour!
What do these two messages have in common? They are both spam and are trying to either phish for your personal and financial data OR to get you to click a link that could infect your phone with malware or steal more information. Some messages look more suspicious than others (anonymous senders promising free prizes or gift cards), but others look more legitimate, even linking to “spoof” websites that look just like your bank, or even student loan site.
So, what do you do if you receive such a message?
If you think the sender may be legitimate:
Contact the company (using a number or email you find for them online, NOT the one sent in the text) and confirm they sent the message. Be aware that no company will ever ask for passwords or personal details via text.
If you think the text is a scam:
Don’t delete it straight away but also don’t engage with it (don’t reply or click anything). Here are some next steps to keep these messages from coming to you AND from scamming others:
- Block future calls and texts. Of course, scammers can always get a new “from” number, but this is a good stopgap. On your phone, you can use the Info button next to the caller’s number (Apple) or use Settings/Blocked Numbers/ Unknown (Android) to block calls from unknown numbers. You can also visit ctia.org to learn more about how your wireless provider can help you block unwanted calls and messages.
- Report spammers. Click and hold down the message and select Copy and Paste it into a new message to 7726 (SPAM) so your wireless provider can stop similar messages to you and others. You can also use the Report Spam/Junk function in your Messages app.
And, if you really want to do the world a favor, you can report spam and phishing attacks to the FTC here: ReportFraud.ftc.gov – Assistant.
