That Text You Got for Someone Else? It Was Really Meant to Hook You

“Hi, Dani. I’m sorry, my vacation was postponed. Might not be able to travel with you.” So read the text message on my phone that was the first step in a new kind of scam.

It’s one you might have had appear on your own phone and puzzled over. Spam calls are sort of easy to spot, but texts like these seem like honest mistakes that you could be tempted to step in and correct, letting the sender know they’ve reached the wrong person. Which is what I did. But after a minute, it became apparent that the text message had indeed reached the correct person, which was anyone at all who would respond and could perhaps be defrauded. 

The person replied with an apology and then: “Thank you, I was thinking I accidentally sent the wrong text message, so I met a kind and friendly friend, I think this is a very interesting thing, ha ha.” It’s a response that is designed to lure the recipient into a conversation that I could sense was not for friendly reasons. I had to admire it as a carefully crafted piece of social engineering. But the scam seemed all the more nefarious because it targets the helpful and if successful will dissuade them from being so friendly in the future. 

These ostensibly misdirected messages are being used to lure people into all sorts of scams, typically direct requests for money or phishing. Sometimes they’re just used to make sure a number is active to open the way for other kinds of spammers and scammers. So here’s how to spot this particular scam and what to do if you’re a target. 

What This Text Scam Looks Like

This scam usually starts out with a message that looks like it was meant for someone else and is fairly urgent so that the receiver feels an obligation to let the sender know it has not reached the right person. It could be about scheduling a medical appointment, questions regarding a sick dog, needing an answer to an urgent work issue, or following up on a date. 

When someone responds, the scammer typically apologizes for the “mixup,” thanks them, and tries to engage them in conversation beyond the original topic.

The scams subreddit on Reddit is filled with examples. User robotictiger posted one(Opens in a new window) like mine, with a person purportedly trying to reach someone named George about a trip. A text that went to user adorable_orange was harder to ignore(Opens in a new window) because it started with an imploring, “Doctor Bill, When will my wisdom teeth be treated?” In both cases, though, the sender quickly pivoted to expressing that they were glad to make a new friend in the circumstances. 

One of the most common types of texts is about a missed connection, whether it’s a supposed follow-up to a Tinder date or an invitation to dinner or a party—like the one Reddit user borderlineblondie got(Opens in a new window) that started, “Hello Archer! Next time there’s a party like last weeks would u want 2 go with me? This is Tanya btw!”

What Do These Scammers Want From You?

These scammers are usually after personal information and/or money and will make this known fairly quickly. This can often lead to a pitch to purchase cryptocurrency or a request for banking information or a credit card number. Reddit user LovestoRead211 had this happen fairly fast(Opens in a new window). The chat turned to the sender asking what LovestoRead211 does for a living, and when the recipient said they were a small business owner, the sender was off on a pitch with “I am a diversified investor. I think I may help you invest in your business.” 

The texts that center around asking for a date are, unsurprisingly, romance scams. It’s a new variation on an old con. Once the person receiving the text says that the sender has the wrong number, the sender often proposes meeting up with or sexting the recipient. They might send nude photos and a link to click that they promise will hold more (but is malware) or ask for photos from the recipient. The text conversation borderlineblondie from above had quickly gone in this direction, with “I had no clue I texted the wrong number! Hopefully ya don’t mind having a lil fun tonight?” 

Then there are times when the misdirected text conversation goes nowhere, but that doesn’t mean that the receiver has escaped scot-free. If they responded, they are likely on a list of active numbers that the scammer will hold onto for future attempts or will sell to others of their ilk. 

How to Protect Yourself

If you’ve received one of these texts, don’t respond, even if it’s to troll the sender because it will still put you at risk for future scams. And certainly do not click on any link in such a message. It’s the hallmark of a phishing scam and is likely a malicious link that’s there to hook your personal information from the place where you keep most of it—your phone. 

If you were trying to help out a person who you believed reached the wrong number and have responded, once you realize what is going on, cease responding.  

In either case, you can report the message as spam if you’re using your phone’s text messaging app and have AT&T, Verizon Wireless, or T-Mobile. Forward the message to SPAM (7726). Then within the app, report the message as junk or spam. If you’re using a messaging app like WhatsApp, you can tap the contact and click Report Contact. 

To prevent or at least cut down on text scams like this one, you can use a text blocker on your phone, a solution from your mobile provider, or a third-party app. 

If you did give your info or clicked on a link, go to the FTC site IdentityTheft.gov(Opens in a new window), which can direct you to what to do in various scam situations from that point forward. There is also a helpful FAQ(Opens in a new window) on the site. 

Don’t Hate the Scammer, Hate the Scam

After money, one of the worst things you can lose in this sort of scam is your faith in others. You don’t want to be naive, but you also do not want to lose empathy. Often the people who are typing out these texts are bigger victims than the people who fall prey to them. A Vice(Opens in a new window) investigation found that they are frequently engaged in forced labor that’s the result of human trafficking or a fake advertisement that they answered.

For more, read Don’t Get Caught! How to Spot Email and SMS Phishing Attempts, 5 Tips for Blocking Mobile Tax Scammers, and Caught in a Sham Romance: How to Spot Online Dating Scams.