SOUTHFIELD, Mich. – Watch out for this text message scam. Con artists are trying to fool users into sharing personal information by sending text messages that look like alerts from banks.
You receive a text message that appears to be from a bank. It’s prompting you to update your profile and provides a link to a website. The link may even have the bank’s name as part of the domain (see example in photo).
If you click on the URL, you will be taken to a form that looks like part of the bank’s website. The page will prompt to “confirm” your identity by entering your name, user ID, password and/or bank account number. Don’t do it! Sharing this information puts you at risk for identity theft.
Protect yourself from text message scams.
- Just hit delete! Ignore instructions to confirm your phone number or visit a link. Some scam texts instruct you to text “STOP” or “NO” to prevent future texts. But this is a common ploy by scammers to confirm they have a real, active phone number.
- Read your phone bill. Check your phone bill for services you haven’t ordered. Some charges may appear only once, but others might be monthly “subscriptions.”
- Know your rights. Real commercial text messages must provide a free, easy way for you to opt out of future communication. Learn more here.
- Know how to combat spam texts. In Canada, an anti-spam law covers text messages. Learn more about reporting and fighting spam here. In the US, forward the texts to 7726 (SPAM on most keypads). This will alert your cellphone carrier to block future texts from those numbers.
- Watch out for lookalike URLs. Just because a URL has the name of a real company in it, doesn’t mean it’s legitimate. Anyone can register a subdomain (realcompany.website.com) or similar URL (realcompany1234.com).
- Ask your phone carrier about blocking third-party charges. Mobile phone carriers permit outside businesses to place charges on your phone bill, but many carriers also allow you to block these charges for free.
For More Information
To find out more about other scams, check out BBB Scam Stopper (bbb.org/scam). Learn more about scam text messages on the Federal Trade Commission website.
About Better Business Bureau Serving Eastern Michigan and the Upper Peninsula
Better Business Bureau Serving Detroit & Eastern Michigan is a non-profit organization with the purpose of promoting trust in the marketplace by assisting in the protection of consumers and businesses from fraud and unethical business practices. In addition to its recognized dispute resolution services, BBB maintains business reviews on the customer service history of more than 85,000 local businesses and provides consumer education materials on numerous topics. BBB provides its services free to the public and its service territory stretches across Eastern Michigan from Ann Arbor through Metropolitan Detroit, Lansing, Flint, upward to Alpena, and covers the entire Upper Peninsula of the state.