Delivery Scam Messages

Are you waiting for items you’ve ordered online?  If you get text messages concerning your parcels, be wary of any that are saying you need to make additional payments in order to receive your item.  Why?  Because fake messages pretending to hold your parcel are a common scam.

Many online retailers will text you to let you know when you can expect delivery of a package or to let you know an item is ready for collection.  Knowing this, scammers send fake delivery notifications saying that a package could not be delivered and offering the recipient a link to resolve the issue delaying their order.

The majority of people receiving such messages aren’t expecting any packages, so it’s likely they’ll be suspicious or perhaps assume it’s a mistake or wrong number.  Either way, they don’t do what it says.  Because this is the case, scams like these send a massive number of messages in the expectation that at least some of the people targeted will be expecting a delivery and won’t want to risk losing their items.

If you get a text asking you to pay or follow a link to receive a package, there are a few common warning signs of a scam. The first warning sign is the number it’s from; if neither you nor your phone recognise it, that’s an indication of a possible scam. If it’s asking for money or for you to follow a link to a website URL that’s not the one you normally use, that’s also a warning sign.

If a message like this is claiming to be from a company you trust, the best course of action is to check with the company whether they actually sent you a message by contacting them in a different. Clicking on links you don’t recognise can be dangerous and is best avoided.

If you have any concerns about messages that sound like they might be fraudulent, just get in touch.