BBB: Beware of accidental text scams

JACKSON, Tenn. — One scam that’s disguised as an honest mistake unexpectedly grew late last year.

In 2024, text message scams surged and one in particular, the accidental text scam, has been circulating widely throughout the Mid-South. In this scam, an unknown sender pretends they texted you by mistake, hoping you’ll reply out of courtesy. That one response confirms your number is active, often leading to more scam calls and texts.

Toddnetta Trice, communications specialist for the Better Business Bureau, goes into more detail on this scamming process.

“Most people that respond short friendly messages, which allows the scammers to engage you before you realize anything is wrong. So once scammers confirm it is a live number, they’ll use AI to mask in a quickly, personalized text, so you definitely want to be careful,” said Trice.

Once scammers get a response, they try to ask for personal information or money. With the use of AI, it can get really personable and last as long as weeks.

“Typically, it’s really a romance, they really do target those that are lonely and who are going to pick up that conversation. So eventually, they’ll start to ask for personal details or money,” said Trice.

Here are some tips to avoid accidental text scams. Don’t engage with unknown numbers, any response confirms your number is active.

If you do respond, stop engaging as soon as you suspect something’s off. Remember: A genuine wrong number usually won’t keep texting you. Block the number on your phone and report it to your mobile carrier or to the BBB’s Scam Tracker.

“Even if you are that nice person that lets people know like hey you got the wrong number or I’m sorry I’m not the person you’re looking for. We want to stop doing that as of right now,” said Trice.

The BBB is encouraging people to report scams to their service providers to reduce the risk of others falling victim.

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