Text scammers are constantly updating their methods to better trick more targets into giving them their personal information. One new tactic utilizes phone numbers with various area codes to try and encourage your trust.
Increased reports of scammers sending spam texts from area codes “949,” “239,” or “720,” among others, are helping raise awareness. If you suspect you’ve received such a scam text, read on to find out how to put an end to them.
Spam texts are an easy way for fraudsters to try to get you to share private information. The data you provide them can subsequently be used by the scammers to dupe you out of money, or gain access to your online profiles or accounts.
There has been a staggering rise in the number of scam text occurrences across the country.
While you might be familiar with the many forms a scam text might take, we encourage you to be wary of any text message you receive that contains any of the following elements:
Keep in mind, these are only a few examples of tactics used in scam texts. For more, read our comprehensive guide to learn more about spotting and stopping spam texts.
Until recently, text scammers didn’t put as much effort into concealing their identity, sending messages from suspicious out-of-area phone numbers, for example. However, now fraudsters have developed ways to alter their numbers and area codes for a particular target area.
What that means for you is, don’t trust a text message as genuine just because the number it was sent from carries a recognizable or nearby area code. If you receive a text message from any of the following area codes, it might be a sign that you’re dealing with a scammer.
While these are the most common area codes used in these text scams, they’re not the only ones. With this in mind, be on the lookout for these other signs of scam texts as well:
All the major U.S. carriers are aware spam texts are on the rise. They’re doing their best to help customers by offering free guides on recognizing spam texts.
Verizon, T-Mobile and AT&T, specifically, take spam texts very seriously, even distributing information to account holders about potential scams. If you’re a customer, this information is usually located on the privacy settings page of the carrier website.
Even more good news is that almost all cell carriers offer both free and premium versions of scam text and scam call monitoring.
First and foremost, never reply to suspicious text messages or click any suspicious links that might be included within a text message.
For your protection, you should consider activating your cell phone’s built-in spam filters. Both iPhone and Android users can do this easily within the “Settings” menu.
There are also reputable third-party security apps available to download, many of which may provide more extensive spam filtering.
If you’ve received a text message claiming to be from a reputable source, for instance, contact that source’s customer service team to find out if they distribute such messages. The reality is, most companies and organizations will never ask you to verify personal details via text.
No matter the incident of text scamming you’ve experienced, however, it’s vital that you report any and all suspicious spam texts or calls as soon as possible.
There are many ways to do this, first by forwarding the content of the message to 7726, directly to your carrier’s privacy team. They will log and further investigate the incident.
You can also report to your carrier directly within the text messages themselves.
Within your phone settings, you should also be provided with an option to both “Report” and “Block” the sender of a potential scam text at the same time.
If you receive a lot of text spam, the most likely reason is because your personal phone number has probably been shared somewhere online, or has been listed and sold on a data-broker site.
Data brokers are an issue worldwide, but in the U.S. alone, hundreds of them operate legally, harvesting publicly available data to sell on to marketers. Occasionally, though, that data can fall into the wrong hands and put you at a high risk for fraud.
The first thing to do is remove your phone number, and any other sensitive information, from any social media accounts or other websites. Also, consider taking action to remove your data from data-broker sites, or hire removal specialists like DeleteMe to do it for you.
We believe that the only effective method to stop spam texts once and for all is to tackle the problem at its root: the removal of your personal information from data-broker sites.
Though this is a process you can undertake on your own, it’s not easy to opt out of each and every data broker, individually. These processes can tend to take weeks or even months to take effect, and there’s no guarantee the request will even be honored.
Using a removal service like DeleteMe, however, is a surefire way to complete data-broker opt-out requests immediately. What’s more, once your information is removed, we continuously monitor the databases to make sure it never gets relisted again.
Find out more about how our services can help, starting at as little as $10.75 a month.
DeleteMe is our premium privacy service that removes you from more than 30 data brokers like Whitepages, Spokeo, BeenVerified, plus many more.
Save 20% on DeleteMe when you use the code DIYPRIVACY.
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