Friendly Texts . . Rarely Are 😞

Scam texts are continuing to get sneakier, and more compelling. Two common ones right now:

• “Pay this toll” - Claims you missed a highway or bridge toll. The link goes to a fake payment page set up to steal your credit card.

• The “Hi…” or “wrong number” text - It might say “H

  i, are you around?” or “I’ll be in [nearby city] Thursday, are you free?” These are neither random nor friendly. If you reply, even to tell them they’ve got the wrong number, they’ll try to start a conversation, build trust, and eventually slip in a money request or shady link.

What helps make these convincing is that the so-called tolling authority or the nearby city are chosen based on your cell phone number.  It adds a sense of legitimacy. “Gee, I DO drive on the Massachusetts Turnpike…”

What do the scammers want?

1. Your money — fake fees, bogus payments.

2. Your passwords — links disguised as your bank, Amazon, the DMV, etc.

3. Your attention — once you’re chatting, they can reel you in and collect more information about you.

What to do:

• Don’t click unexpected links.  Even if you are 100% positive that a text is from your bank, DO NOT click the link.  Go to your bank’s website yourself and check things out.

• Don’t reply at all - even “Stop” proves your number is active and that you are willing to engage.

• Delete the message. This will often give you the chance to report the sender as Junk. 

Bottom line: if it feels off, it probably is. These scams only work if you answer the door when the bad guys knock.