Along with death and taxes, spam texts have become an unavoidable part of the human experience. The good news is that you can shake the spammers and fight the buzzkill by killing that annoying buzz. By recognizing the red flags and downloading a game-changing spam text blocker like Robokiller, you can preserve your privacy and put your mind at ease.
Spam calls have existed even longer than cell phones. But as our culture came to embrace text messaging over phone calls, spammers were forced to adapt to the shift – and they did not fail.
Check out a couple of important spam text stats from our recent phone scam report:
Spam texts are in full-stride, and they pose a real financial threat to innocent, unassuming people. With a little advanced preparation, though, you can make sure you don’t fall for the traps.
Always proceed with caution when someone is asking for money or information via text. You will be less likely to pay the price for a scam if you recognize the shady situation as it’s happening. To do that, familiarize yourself with some of the more common text scam trends today.
Shopping produces a dopamine rush, and online shopping increases the effect: Since you don’t get the instant gratification of getting your goods right away, the anticipation is elongated. Unfortunately, phone scammers take advantage of that excitement by imitating delivery services such as UPS, FedEx, and Amazon and swiping your personal information.
Watch out for fraudulent texts from delivery services that include links to track your order or update your preferences — they may solicit personal details or download harmful malware onto your device.
Sometimes political messages can be frequent (and annoying) enough to be considered a scam, even if there’s nothing illegal going on. Unfortunately, this may make it easier for actual scammers to sneak in unnoticed.
When you donate money to a political campaign, make sure you read the fine print and look out for auto-checked boxes that enroll you in recurring payments. Beware of PAC scams that solicit “donations” that don’t actually go to the political party you want to support.
In 2020, the initial coronavirus outbreak led to a slew of different COVID text scams. Scammers posed as PPE suppliers with deals on hard-to-get necessities, IRS agents looking for confirmation for your stimulus payment, and vaccine centers encouraging you to register for your first or second dose.
With vaccines — and booster shots — still being administered, these scams still have just as much relevance. Be especially careful not to click any links in these spam texts, as scammers use them to phish and elicit your personal information or download malware to your phone.
It’s not uncommon to get text updates from your bank to confirm purchases and protect you from fraud. Unfortunately, bank text scams exploit you under the guise of protecting you from the very fraud they’re committing. In many cases, you’ll get a text message asking you to confirm a transfer of funds with a “YES” or “NO” reply.
If you respond to a message like this and get a follow-up call, don’t answer. Instead, call your bank to find out if it’s really from them. If it was a legitimate message, you can connect to whomever you need to speak with on the bank’s secure line.
A relatively new Apple text scam looks like an alert that your Apple Pay account has been suspended. It includes a link that directs you to a phony website designed to steal your username and password along with personal details like your name, address, and even banking and credit card information.
Before you click any link in any text message, check the contact number or email address. When in doubt, reach out to Apple. If your account has indeed been suspended, you can solve the problem by safely initiating contact yourself.
The first line of defense against spam texts is keeping your number out of spammers’ hands. To do so, it helps to understand how it can get out in the first place.
You might give your number away by:
Social media is firmly embedded in our society, so staying away from it entirely is too tall an order for most. If you live for your social apps, use them responsibly.
In addition to tracking your online activity and data, your social media accounts store personal information like your name, your username, and in many cases, more valuable details like your phone number and credit card information. Refraining from giving out your number (even when you think you trust the recipient) helps cut down on spam.
Responding to spam just creates more of it. When you answer a call or respond to a text from a spammer, you show them they reached out to an active number. Since they know you’ll receive their communications, they can continue to bother you in the future. Don’t answer calls or texts that you suspect are spam.
When you sign up for just about anything, companies will ask you for your phone number. Although this is often an optional field, sometimes you need to put down a phone number to join the rewards program, enter the contest, or gain eligibility for certain perks.
No matter what the reward might be, always think twice before you give out your phone number. You can typically unsubscribe from email mailing lists and push notifications from legitimate companies, but giving your number to the wrong people can result in irreversible damage.
These are just a few ways that spammers and scammers (and people you don’t want to deal with) can get ahold of your phone number. Many telemarketing firms have technology that can cold-call all landline and cell phone numbers, but there are ways you can remove yourself from their radar.
In addition to downloading the Robokiller spam text blocker, try the following tips to keep your phone spam-free:
Sometimes blocking spam texts can be as simple as saying “no.” When you end up on a legitimate mailing list, you can typically unsubscribe, most of the time just by replying “STOP.” Before you respond, however, look up the number to ensure you’re not just confirming that yours is active.
If the same number continuously interrupts your day with spam calls and messages, you can always block it. This won't protect you from the same spammer on a different number, but it's easy to do and will entirely cut off this particular source.
The exact method for blocking spam by number varies by the phone manufacturer.
For iPhone users, there are several ways to block a specific number. It's possible to do it via the Phone app, the FaceTime app, the Messages app, and the Mail app. From the Phone app, go to "Recents," tap the info button next to the number or contact you want to block, scroll down a bit and choose "Block this Caller."
For Android, it's similar and just as easy to do as for iPhones. Simply open the Phone app, tap on the "More" button, go to the call history, and choose the number or contact you want to block. Now, tap on "Block/report spam." To block private or identified numbers, go to "Settings" within the Phone app, choose "Blocked numbers," and turn on "Unknown."
You can protect yourself and others from spammers by reporting suspicious spam text messages. Simply forward the text to 7726 (SPAM), email ReportFraud.ftc.gov, or notify your cell carrier.
If you want to fully protect yourself from annoying spammers and aggressive scammers, you need the best spam text blocker app — Robokiller.
Blocking specific numbers that send you annoying spam or scam texts is pretty straightforward on an iPhone. Just do the following:
To view and modify your blocked numbers, go to Settings > Messages > Blocked Contacts.
You can also filter unknown callers or text message senders with your iPhone. Go to Settings, choose the Messages menu, and tap "Filter Unknown Senders."
Preventing a specific phone number from ever sending you a text message again is also easy on Android. Just follow these steps:
From here, you can report spammers in addition to blocking them from contacting you.
You can also filter unidentified callers and text message senders with your Android device. To do so, go to the Phone app, then Settings, and tap "Enable Caller ID & Spam."
Spam and scams are constantly changing, so you need a spam text blocker app that can handle not just this generation, but all the others that will follow.
In addition to blocking unwanted texts, Robokiller’s call blocking technology keeps you safe by:
And here’s why you should choose Robokiller over the competition:
Spam texts are unsolicited messages sent over SMS, often for the purposes of advertising, phishing, or spreading malware. These messages can be from businesses, unknown numbers, or even numbers that appear to be from trusted sources. They have become a growing issue, with over 225 billion spam texts sent in 2022 alone, according to Robokiller estimates.
You can stop spam texts through a number of methods. One is by opting out of legitimate mailing lists, usually by replying "STOP" to the message. You can also block specific numbers that send spam messages and report spam texts to your cell carrier by forwarding the message to 7726 (SPAM). A comprehensive solution, however, is to use a spam text blocker app like Robokiller, which uses sophisticated technology to intercept and block scammers.
There are several common scam texts to be aware of. Delivery scams imitate services like UPS, FedEx, and Amazon to solicit personal details. Political scams might seek fraudulent "donations." COVID-19 scams may pose as suppliers, IRS agents, or vaccine centers to elicit personal information. Bank scams imitate your bank's fraud protection measures to trick you into transferring funds. Always be wary of unexpected or suspicious texts, and never click on links or provide personal information without verifying the source.
