About 99% of the time, an email or text that warns you of a problem or an account closing is a scam. Don’t click on any links and contact the company directly if you think there’s any chance it’s a legitimate message.
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I’ve gotten two of these this morning! I feel so special!
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Yeah, I’m getting those every day. For awhile, I would respond, “Great! Can you tell me my name and profession?” and of course I never got a reply. Now I just block and delete.
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I’ve been getting several of those a week. It cracks me up how they list fantastic benefits yet they have many job openings and are having to reach out to potential employees. But I’m sure there are many people who fall for it.
It must be “recruiter spam week” (similar to Fleet Week) because I too got one -
Sadly, yes. It’s not hard to believe that many desperate, down-on-their-luck individuals might fall for “opportunities” like this.
I’ve been getting plenty of these too. It’s irritating, because my new phone (an iPhone) doesn’t automatically filter these out and I have to manually deal with each one. It seemed that my old phone (a Pixel) was pretty good about filtering out spam/scam messages all by itself.
(My kids and husband pushed me into switching to iPhone, but there are a lot of things about it that make me feel like a cranky old person who hates new things 
)
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Thanks for this validation. I also like my Pixel but have some folks encouraging a switch.
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Pixel 4 Eva!
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I get so many “invoices” and “receipts” for things I never ordered or purchased. I just put them in spam folder and block. I never open them because I don’t need any viruses, thank you!
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I get those too! In fact, I got one about an hour ago! They are so annoying! I’ve gotten some with atrocious grammar and run on sentences and one that said “thank u!” at the end! The ones I get always seem to say “no experience necessary!” “make lots of money!” and sometimes they aren’t real clear on what the job actually is.
Same here! We have a family friend whose partner is older and very blunt and she LOVES to mess with scammers. There was one time when she went:
Family friend to scammer: “what’s your name son?”
Scammer with strong foreign accent: Todd (he had some random American name even though I doubt he was American)
Family friend to scammer/Todd: “well Todd, do you like grandmas?”
Scammer/Todd: Uh, sure I guess
Family friend: “Well Todd, I’m looking for a strapping young man to add some spice to my life.”
Scammer/Todd: hangs up (probably blushing furiously)
And this is keeping it appropriate. Funny thing is this family friend could do all this with a straight face. I wouldn’t be able to do this without laughing. I kind of wish I could mess with scammers.
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I received a text message from my credit card company a few days ago telling me I had just made a $2K charge at a big-box retailer. After looking at my credit card account online to make sure the charge was really there and it wasn’t a spam text I called the card company to report the fraudulent charge. They cancelled the card and are mailing out a new one. Then about 2 hours later I got a call from the big-box store that my items were ready for pickup; apparently I had bought a few portable A/C units online. I let them know the purchase was fraud.
So it’s worth setting up alerts on your credit card that text (or email) you when things like a card-not-present transaction happens or a transaction over a certain dollar amount.
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…
I’ve received emails from Elon Musk!
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Yes, I’ve received one where he was pitching a revolutionary new energy saving device that he invented. So believable! The richest man in the world wants to save a few bucks on his electric bill, and he’s so altruistic, he wants to share his secret with me. All for just $20 (paid in advance, of course).
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I’ve been getting an assortment of these…the ‘we have a job for you’ the ‘your Fast Track account is overdrawn’ the simple and puzzling 'Hello. are you still available this afternoon?" I copy the text and immediately send it back. That ends the discussion.
Got one the other day 'did you get your plastic updated Medicare Card?". Why yes. I did…thank you so much. No I mean the plastic one!!! Yes, yes, I received the plastic one. Oh, well, I need you to verify some info so you can start using it. Um…thanks but I have been using it so successfully the past few weeks…can’t thank you enough. Um…mam..I do need to to verify some things so you can continue using your card. Okay..what do you need. What day did you first enroll in Medicare…oh…let me think back…oh yes. That would have been July 1 1979. Can you repeat that - yes July 1 1979. somehow the call ended.
Those data lists were worth something!
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An intentional wrong number text is the entry point to multiple different types of scams. Because these are so prevalent and lead to several unwelcome outcomes (including you confirming you have a live number, leading to more spam/scams), it is recommended that you do not reply to them, even out of courtesy. They hope to take your courtesy, parlay it into a conversation (often by commenting how nice you are and giving some suggestion of fate in meeting this way), and eventually deploy a scam.
If you received a wrong number inquiry that seems to assume a connection with you (e.g. seeking a specific friend, inquiring about a doctor’s appointment, asking about a business correspondence, etc.) and there are no pictures included, then you are likely at the beginning of a crypto scam. Use ! crypto without the space to get more info on crypto scams. You can see a video of this scam develop from wrong number to crypto scam at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZ_flb9tGuc
If you receive a random text from a woman that is trying to play up a relationship/hook-up angle and includes an alluring photo, you have encountered what this subreddit often calls the Mandy scam, based on the name used in an early incarnation of it. The replies are sent by a bot and will give the same responses (with some slight variations) regardless of how you respond. The bot also has a few specialized responses that occur when you say words like ‘bot’ or ‘scam’. After a series of replies, it will eventually push you to go to an adult/cam/age verification site.
There is also some evidence that intentional wrong number texts can be part of a data-gathering exercise where each bit of info you give (e.g ‘Hi Susan!’ and you reply with your name out of courtesy) is collected to be used against you in other scams.
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