5 texts you must ignore this holiday season

Scammers draw from a bottomless bag of tricks to get you to hand over your money. They dramatically ramp up their actions when there’s a global event or an upcoming holiday. Not even Veterans Day is safe. Tap or click here for a story that proves criminals have no shame.

The holiday season is another hot ticket. With people buying so much during these months, money and retail scams are ramping up.

You must be extra vigilant against criminals around this time. You don’t want to deal with the additional stress of losing money or personal information. Read on for five scams to watch out for and what you can do to protect yourself against them.

1. Short or single-word texts

Text messages are often jam-packed with information, so receiving a message with one word or a short phrase might be strange. Unless you know the number the message is coming from, continue with caution.

Scammers regularly send single-word texts saying “Hi” or “How are you?” hoping to initiate a conversation. Once they’ve gained your trust, it often leads to a request for money or personal details.

Never give information to someone you don’t trust or haven’t met in person. These schemes can turn into romance scams, and they have no interest in making a meaningful connection.   

2. Missed delivery notification

Countless dollars change hands as people shop for gifts and holiday supplies. While some prefer to pick things up from a store, others enjoy the comfort of home deliveries through retailers such as Amazon and Walmart.

But it’s not always practical to be home at the exact moment the delivery van rolls by. If you’re out, the company might text or email saying the delivery couldn’t be made. Unfortunately, criminals are using the same tactics to trick you. 

They often send fake missed delivery notifications with a phone number to call or a link to click to reschedule it. But beware! The links can lead to malicious websites that steal personal information or ask for banking details.

Don’t call the number either, as the operator could try to convince you to install remote software that lets them take control of your device. 

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