If you get this 'wrong number' text, delete it right away
Robocalls have become so common that they have entered pop culture. You’ll find memes and jokes focusing on car warranty calls all over social media. They’re good for a laugh, but the situation is becoming severe.
This past summer, the Federal Trade Commission forced the nation’s largest wireless carriers to employ technology to combat robocalls. Here we are approaching the end of the year, and it doesn’t seem like anything’s changed. What happened? Tap or click here to find out.
Ever received a text from a stranger asking for someone you don’t know? According to the Better Business Bureau, you may write it off as a wrong number, but it could be a scam.
Wrong number? Not really
The Better Business Bureau is issuing a scam alert about “wrong number” texts. Here’s how the scheme works. You receive a text from a number you don’t recognize. The sender says they met you through a dating site and chatted at some point. Now they are around and want to meet.
The polite thing to do is set them straight, right? Respectfully tell them they have the wrong number. But after you reply, you’ll get some nice words and maybe even some suggestive photos of someone. Any messages you send will be ignored.
The truth is the person on the other end isn’t even a person. It’s a chatbot that will try to get you to register for a dating or adult website so you can become closer to them and get even more photos. Their end goal is to get your credit card information.
Tap or click here for tips on stopping bots and spammers from calling you.
Don’t fall for it
The above is just one example of this type of scam. There are more like it, and more will be developed as people catch on. You don’t need to know all the scams to protect yourself, however. Just take the proper precautions and follow these tips:
- If you get a text from a strange number, just ignore it. Responding could put you on a list and you’ll receive more scam calls.
- Block phone numbers that send suspicious messages, especially if they contain links.
- Never give out personal or financial information to a stranger over the phone or text.
- If you get a suspicious text or fall victim to a scam, report it at bbb.org/scamtracker
Keep reading
Americans received a shocking number of robocalls last year - how to stop them
Robocalls have long since been a plague for Americans, but it reached a whole new level in 2019. It got so bad even wireless carriers and the U.S. government reached a breaking point.
But even with new tools and a law that gives the FCC more power to combat the calls, they just keep coming. Tap or click here to learn more about the TRACED Act that was recently signed into law.
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