Spam texts: 7 examples and how to stop them

We’ve all experienced the frustration of receiving a notification on our phone, only to discover it’s yet another spam text. While it might be tempting to respond, engaging with spam messages can expose you to potential cybersecurity risks.

According to Robokiller’s latest report, Americans received 78 billion robotexts in the first half of 2023. While not all spam texts are outright scams — some may be legitimate marketing messages — many are attempts by cybercriminals to steal your money, personal information, or account logins.

Since it’s difficult to distinguish between harmless spam and dangerous scams, it's crucial to exercise caution with any unsolicited text message. By knowing how to spot and stop spam texts, you can better protect yourself from the risks they pose.

How to spot spam texts

Spam texts often come from unknown numbers, contain grammar errors, use threatening language, make offers that are too good to be true, or demand your personal information. Suspicious caller IDs, strange requests, or uncharacteristic writing are all potential warning signs of dangerous messages.

Here’s more detailed guidance on what to look out for to identify scam or spam texts:

• Unknown numbers: Spam texts, particularly those that are sent in bulk using automation, typically come from unknown numbers. Treat unsolicited texts that come from numbers you don’t have saved as contacts with caution, no matter who they claim to be from.
• Poor grammar and misspelled words: Cybercriminals may deliberately include mistakes in spam messages to weed out skeptical people, while others do it accidentally as a result of writing in a second language, for example. Just remember that some spam texts might have perfect grammar, so don’t rely on this clue alone.
• Offers that are too good to be true: Scammers might promote unrealistic offers, discounts, or giveaways to pressure you into sending them money or revealing personal information.
• Urgent or threatening language: Scammers often use threats or create a sense of urgency so you’ll give them your personal information or money without thinking. For example, they might lie and say you'll face legal action if you don't settle an “overdue debt.”
• Personal information requests: Scammers often pose as legitimate companies or government agencies in an attempt to steal your personal information. This tactic, known as spoofing, makes it harder to identify fake texts, adding to the challenge of avoiding falling for dangerous scams.
• Suspicious links and attachments: Scam texts often include suspicious links or attachments, which may lead to webpages containing fake forms designed to steal your information or malware that can be installed on your device if you click.

If you receive an unsolicited text message with suspicious links, unrealistic promises, or pushy demands, don’t interact with it. Instead, visit your settings to block the sender and secure your phone.

7 spam text message examples

Spam text messages often impersonate reputable organizations and may include false notifications about prizes, deliveries, or toll charges. Here are some examples to help you identify these fake messages.

1. Prize or lottery scams

Fake prize scams aim to excite you with the promise of big rewards but only deliver disappointment. Scammers may claim they need your personal details for you to receive a prize. Other times, they may ask you to cover shipping costs — only to take your money and block you.

For example, scammers may impersonate Publishers Clearing House or Amazon and attempt to trick you into sending them money or clicking a link to redeem a prize. Never respond to texts about winning prizes if you didn’t enter a contest.

2. Fake delivery notifications

Fake delivery notification texts, often associated with USPS and UPS scams, may claim your package is on hold and urge you to confirm your address by visiting a linked website. These texts exploit the fear of losing a delivery and use trusted brand names to lure victims into clicking the link without hesitation.

The links included in these texts lead to webpages designed to harvest personal information for identity theft or install malware on your device. In some cases, scammers may even ask you to pay an unusual delivery fee directly, which is a clear red flag to watch out for.

3. Bank impersonation scams

Criminals can impersonate banks over text to deceive you into disclosing financial information or other data. Fake bank texts often assert you have unusual account activity, claiming you need to confirm your account login information to resolve it.

In some cases, bank scams attempt to get you to transfer funds to confirm your account is active. Regardless of the bank you use, remember that they’ll never ask you for personal information via text message.

4. IRS text scams

IRS text scams are fraudulent messages sent by scammers impersonating the Internal Revenue Service. These texts often claim that you owe taxes, threatening legal action or asset seizure unless you pay them.

Tax scams like these can go as far as spoofing caller ID information, making it appear as though they’re texting you from an official IRS number. The IRS will never contact you via text, email, or social media. Unless you receive an official IRS letter, any messages sent regarding owed tax are most likely scams which you should report to the IRS as phishing.

5. Overdue toll notices

Cybercriminals may falsely claim you have an overdue toll payment and threaten legal action if you don't pay — a similar tactic to IRS scams. They might include a link that leads to a fake website that mimics the official site’s design.

Although some toll issuers may send notifications via text if you’ve signed up for them, they won’t usually ask you to pay via text. Don’t respond to texts claiming you owe a toll. Instead, call the issuer or visit their official website to verify the charge and pay any outstanding amounts through their secure payment gateway.

6. Job offer scams

Job offer scams often involve unsolicited text messages claiming to be from a reputable company promising high-paying work-from-home positions that require minimal effort. Cybercriminals may find targets on a job site or spam lots of numbers assuming some recipients will be looking for work.

Job application scams that reach you via text may involve jobs unrelated to your field or be vague about the details. They might include a malicious link prompting you to give them information that could lead to employment identity theft. Or, they might just test the waters to see if you respond, potentially flagging your number as a good target for future schemes.

7. Cryptocurrency scams

Cryptocurrency scam texts attempt to trick you into investing in a fake crypto platform or scheme. If you pay the initial amount, the fraudster might send you fake screenshots of account growth, encouraging you to “invest” more.

In some cases, criminals invite you to join expert cryptocurrency groups, promising incredible returns with insider tips and making payment requests through platforms like Cash App.

No matter the platform, cryptocurrencies are notoriously difficult to trace, making them a preferred tool for fraudsters. Always exercise caution and remain skeptical of unsolicited investment advice from strangers.

How to block spam text messages

You can block spam text messages by using the built-in settings menu in your messaging app to block the sender. Blocking these messages will stop further attempts to contact you from that number.

Blocking spam texts on iPhone

You can block unwanted text messages from the Messages app. This will block all future calls and texts from the blocked number.

Here’s how to block spam texts on iPhone:

1. Open the Messages app and select the spam message.
2. Tap the name or number at the top.
3. Scroll down and select Block this Caller.

The sender won’t be notified if you block their number on your iPhone, you simply won't receive their messages.

Blocking spam texts on Android

Here’s how to block spam texts on Android:

1. Open your Messages app and select the spam text.
2. Tap the three-dot menu, and select Block & report spam.

All future attempts to contact you from this number will go straight into the spam folder.

You can also choose to block spam calls by going to your Phone app, selecting an unwanted contact, and tapping Block & report spam at the bottom of the screen. Doing either will prevent any calls or texts from these numbers reaching you.

How to stop spam text messages

You can use built-in messaging filters on your phone or a third-party app to help stop spam messages. You can also take extra steps to help minimize spam by removing your information from social media and people-search sites across the web.

How to stop spam texts on iPhone

You can stop spam texts on your iPhone by filtering unknown senders from your phone’s message settings. This sends all texts from numbers not saved in your phone contacts to a separate folder and stops you from receiving notifications when they’re received.

Here’s how to enable unknown sender filtering on your iPhone:

1. Open your Settings, tap on Apps, and select Messages.
2. Scroll down until you see Message Filtering.
3. Toggle on Filter Unknown Senders.

You can also filter spam calls by going to Phone under your Apps and scrolling until you find Silence Unknown Callers. Enabling both settings can help dramatically reduce the number of spam calls and texts you receive.

How to stop spam texts on Android

If you’re using Android’s default messaging app, you can stop spam texts by enabling spam protection from the app’s settings. If you’ve never changed these settings, your spam protection is likely already active.

Here’s how to stop spam texts on Android using Google’s built-in spam protection:

1. Open Google Messages, tap your profile picture in the upper-right corner, and select Messages settings.
2. Scroll down and tap Spam protection.
3. Toggle on Enable spam protection.

Use a third-party spam protection app

Many major mobile carriers offer text and call-blocking tools, such as Verizon’s Call Filter. You can also download third-party spam-blocking apps directly from the Google Play Store or Apple Appstore.

Here are some of the most popular third-party apps that can help you stop spam texts for iOS and Android:

• Textkiller: An iOS app that claims to eliminate 99% of spam text messages. Textkiller also has a built-in report function for texts they miss.
• Robokiller: An iOS and Android app that makes a similar claim of blocking 99% of texts and robocalls.
• Call & SMS Blocker - Blacklist: A call and text blocking tool for Android that enables you to blacklist numbers. Call & SMS Blocker also has a built-in SMS text messaging app.

These third-party apps can offer an extra layer of protection when blocking texts. Just make sure to select a trustworthy and reputable app to help safeguard your data.

Remove your phone number from the web

While it’s extremely difficult to entirely remove your personal information from the internet, you can minimize exposure of your phone number by making your social media pages private and opting out of public people search websites like TruthFinder, FastPeopleSearch, and BeenVerified.

Here’s how to remove your phone number from people-search sites:

1. Use a search engine to find your name and number online.
2. Create a list of people-search sites where you find yourself.
3. Go to each site and find the opt-out page to submit a request.

For help reducing public exposure of your phone number and other personal information, get LifeLock. Our Privacy Monitor feature scans common public people-search websites for your information and helps you opt-out, giving you more control over your phone number online.

What to do if you receive a spam text

If you receive a spam text, don’t reply, click any links, or provide personal information. Instead, block the number and report the message to both the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and your phone company.

These steps will provide you with more detailed instructions on what to do in response to a spam text:

• Do not reply: Replying to a spam text informs the spammer that your number is active. Even if you ask them to stop, a spammer will take the reply as confirmation that you’re a viable target, often prompting them to send more spam texts.
• Do not click any links or attachments: Clicking links or opening attachments might lead you to a dangerous website or trigger a malware download that can compromise your data security.
• Do not provide any personal information: Providing personal information in response to spam texts can result in account takeover attacks, ranging from financial accounts to social media profiles like Facebook.
• Block the number: Blocking a sender stops any further spam received from that number from reaching your inbox, helping prevent repeat spam texts.
• Report the message to your phone company: Reporting spam messages to your phone company helps them take action against spammy and fraudulent practices. To do this, forward the text to 7726 (which spells “SPAM” on a traditional keypad).
• Report the message to the FTC: Report scam messages to the FTC to help them track and investigate ongoing scams that could also be targeting other victims.

Help safeguard against spammers

Your private information is more exposed than ever, making fighting spam alone a difficult task. Sign up for LifeLock to benefit from identity theft protection features including privacy and dark web monitoring. This helps you detect exposure of your phone number and other personal information online, so you can take steps to remove it and boost your privacy.

As a LifeLock member you’ll also get dedicated recovery support from a U.S.-based restoration specialist if your identity is stolen following a scam, helping you restore your identity more easily than you can on your own.

FAQs

Why are you getting so many spam texts?

You might be getting more spam texts because your number has been added to a marketing list or people-search site. Scammers might also get your number through phishing attacks or following a data breach.

How do I report spam texts?

You can report spam texts by forwarding them to 7726, which sends the message to your phone carrier. Some messaging apps also enable you to report spam from a menu within your messaging app.

What happens if I open a spam text?

Typically, nothing will happen by simply opening a spam text. The danger in spam texts typically lies in responding or accidentally tapping malicious links that could install malware or steal your personal information.

How can I add my number to the National Do Not Call Registry?

You can add your number to the National Do Not Call Registry through the official website. It can take up to 31 days for telemarketing spam calls to stop, and your registration is permanent.