GREENSBORO, N.C. — The scammers are stepping up their game and making their texts look more legit.
In March, 2 Wants To Know showed a fake text about how you paid your cell phone bill and now you have a free gift. There's a random link at the bottom.
Now the scam has morphed to include a picture and an AT&T-looking logo along with the promise of freebies because you paid your bill.
No matter how legit a text looks at the moment, there are always a few scam giveaways.
Check the number at the top of the text. When a company you do business with sends texts to you, it's not from a 10-digit phone number that looks like it’s from a friend. Company-sponsored text numbers are different. There’s no area code, no digit spacing.
Will the scammers figure out how to make it look like a 4-digit number? Maybe, but for now, this is an easy red flag.
Along with the numbers at the top, there is another place to look. At the bottom, the link usually has a few differences. The scam text has a random link, you wouldn't know it had anything to do with AT&T.
The real text from AT&T includes att.com.
Here's my thing, I don't click links even in the real messages. if I want to check something on my account, I go directly to the app or website, it's just safer that way.
AT&T's website warns of spam texts:
Spam text messages
Spam texts are unsolicited and unwanted ads. Avoid responding directly to these – doing so alerts the spammer that your phone number is genuine.
- These messages usually count against your text plan.
- If the text contains a telephone number, do not call the number. It is just another part of the scam.
- They will likely come from a normal ten-digit phone number you don’t recognize. (such as 555-555-1234 rather than a short code number like 15005)
- Do not call the number the text came from to ask what the text meant.