FCC Issues Consumer Alert on Robotext Scams

Leila Sharma

The FCC (Federal Communications Commission) is warning consumers of the 100% rise of robotext scams within the past year. Robotext scammers may try to create a sense of fear or urgency to trick you into taking an action that is not in your best interest. Some scammers may be seeking an immediate financial payoff from stolen information, others may be gathering personal information, for use in future scams. 

Be on the lookout for:

  • Delivery updates for items you did not order. 
  • Links that redirect you to your financial institution’s site. Note, if clicked, you may receive a spoofed login prompt or be taken directly to a spoofed webpage to login. 
  • Fake “wrong number” texts sent by chat bots. These are texts hoping to engage you in a personal exchange, the goals of which may be to:
    • Verify that your line is active so that you can be targeted with more spam
    • Sign you up for services you may not have explicitly agreed to 
    • Steal your sensitive information
  • Messages from your contacts that seem out of character
  • Messages purporting to be from a government agency. Government agencies won’t initiate contact by phone or text
  • Text messages which originate from an email address or strange numbers
  • Misspellings in messages
  • Incomplete messages

Please be reminded that it is a best practice to never open links or attachments associated with unexpected messages, even when the message is from someone that you know. Instead verify the legitimacy of the message received via a trusted phone number. To learn about what the FCC is doing to protect you from these types of scams, see the following FCC Consumer Guide, Stop Unwanted Robocalls and Texts.

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