Scam Texts: How to Spot a Fake Text Message and What to Do If You Tapped the Link

A scam text is a message that pretends to come from a company, an agency or a person you trust so you will tap a link, reply, or call a number. Security people call it “smishing,” a mix of SMS and phishing. The messages are short and look routine: a package you need to reschedule, an unpaid toll, a locked bank account, a refund waiting for you, or a “wrong number” from a friendly stranger.

This guide is for anyone with a phone, and especially for older adults and the family members who help them set up their phones. The warning signs and steps below were checked against FTC consumer advice on October 8, 2026.

The scam texts people get most

• Delivery problems. “Your package could not be delivered. Update your address here.” The link leads to a fake page that asks for a small “redelivery fee” and your card number.
• Unpaid tolls or fines. A message that says you owe a toll, parking ticket or traffic fine and must pay today to avoid a penalty.
• Bank or card alerts. “Did you make a $499 purchase? Reply YES or NO.” Replying starts a conversation with a scammer posing as your bank’s fraud team, who then asks for a code or tells you to move money.
• Account locked or expiring. Your streaming service, phone company, email or online store account “will be closed” unless you sign in through the link.
• Prizes, refunds and gift cards. You won something, or you are owed a refund, and you only need to pay a small fee or enter your card to claim it.
• Jobs and easy money. A recruiter offers well-paid remote work for a few minutes a day, then asks you to pay for training or to deposit money.
• The “wrong number.” “Hi, is this Lisa? Are we still on for dinner?” When you reply, the sender is friendly and keeps chatting. Weeks later the conversation turns to an investment or a request for money.
• A family member with a new number. “Hi Mom, I dropped my phone, this is my new number.” A request for money follows soon after. See Family Emergency Scams.

Five warning signs

1. It came out of the blue and has a link. The FTC says legitimate companies won’t ask for information about your account by text. A link in an unexpected text is the biggest red flag.
2. It asks for personal or financial information. A password, a card number, a Social Security number, or a code that was just sent to your phone.
3. It is urgent. Pay today, act within 24 hours, or your account will be closed. Pressure is there to stop you from checking.
4. The link or sender looks slightly off. A web address with extra words or odd spelling, or a message from a long number or an email address instead of a short company code. Scammers can make a sender look real, though, so a normal-looking sender proves nothing.
5. It asks you to reply or call a number in the text. Replying tells scammers your number is active, and the number in the message goes straight to them.

The safe way to check a text

Don’t tap. Check it yourself. If a text might be real, close it and go to the company directly: open the app you already use, type the company’s web address into your browser, or call the number on the back of your card or on a recent bill. If there really is a problem with your package, toll account or bank, you will see it there.

This one habit beats almost every scam text. It works because the scam depends on you using the link or number the scammer chose.

How to report and block scam texts

• Forward it to 7726. Copy the message and forward it to 7726 (it spells SPAM). This free service lets your mobile carrier block similar messages. Most carriers in the U.S. support it.
• Use the “Report junk” option. On iPhone and Android, the Messages app offers a report or block option under messages from unknown senders.
• Report it to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
• Delete it. After reporting, delete the message so nobody taps it later by mistake.

Phone settings that cut down scam texts

• iPhone: in Settings, open Messages and turn on Filter Unknown Senders. Messages from people not in your contacts go to a separate list, and links in them are not clickable until you reply or add the sender.
• Android (Google Messages): open Messages settings, then Spam protection, and turn on Enable spam protection.
• Your carrier: most mobile carriers offer free spam filtering or blocking tools for calls and texts. Check your carrier’s app or website.

Setting names change between phone versions. If you can’t find one, search your phone’s settings for “unknown” or “spam.” Our guide Stop Scam Calls on a Parent’s Phone walks through the call settings too.

If you already tapped the link

Don’t panic. Tapping alone usually does less harm than what you do next. Work through what applies to you:

• You only opened the page: close it. Don’t enter anything. Make sure your phone’s software is up to date.
• You entered a password: change that password right away, and change it anywhere else you used the same one. Turn on two-step sign-in. See Hacked Email: What to Do.
• You entered a card number: call the number on the back of your card, report the fraud, and ask for a new card.
• You gave bank details or sent money: call your bank or payment app right away and ask them to stop or reverse the payment.
• You gave your Social Security number: go to IdentityTheft.gov for a recovery plan and consider a credit freeze.
• You downloaded an app or file: delete it, then run your phone’s security check or restart it. If the phone acts strangely, ask your carrier or the phone maker’s store for help.
• You shared a code that was texted to you: someone may be signing in to your account. Change that account’s password from the official app or website and sign out of other devices.

Report what happened at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. Expect follow-up messages. Scammers sometimes text again offering to “recover” your money for a fee. See Refund and Settlement Scams.

Helping an older parent with texts

• Turn on unknown-sender filtering together, and show them where filtered messages go.
• Agree on a simple rule: “We never tap a link in a text we didn’t expect. We open the app or call instead.”
• Tell them that if a family member texts from a “new number,” they should call that person’s old number or another relative before doing anything.
• Offer to be the person they forward any odd text to before they act. A screenshot sent to you takes seconds.

Checklist

• Unknown-sender or spam filtering is on for every phone in the house.
• Everyone knows: don’t tap links in unexpected texts, check in the app instead.
• Everyone knows to forward scam texts to 7726, then delete them.
• Passwords that matter are unique, with two-step sign-in turned on.
• ReportFraud.ftc.gov is saved.

FAQ

Is it safe to reply STOP to a scam text?

For texts from companies you signed up with, STOP is a normal way to unsubscribe. For a text you never asked for, it is better not to reply at all. Replying tells the sender your number is active. Report and delete instead.

The text used my name. Doesn’t that mean it’s real?

No. Names and phone numbers are easy to find from data breaches and public records. Knowing your name is not proof of who sent the message.

Can I get a virus just by reading a text?

It is rare. Keeping your phone’s software updated protects against most of these problems. The bigger risk is tapping a link and entering information, or installing something the message tells you to install.

Why do I get so many of these?

Scammers send huge numbers of texts to numbers they guess or buy. Getting them doesn’t mean you did something wrong. Filtering and reporting to 7726 help reduce them over time.

Sources

• Federal Trade Commission, “How to Recognize and Report Spam Text Messages,” consumer.ftc.gov, accessed October 8, 2026.
• Federal Trade Commission, “What To Do if You Were Scammed,” consumer.ftc.gov, accessed October 8, 2026.

This is general information, not legal or financial advice. If you lost money, contact your bank or payment provider right away and report the scam at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.