Close up on the hand of young woman using a smartphone, tapping the screen in city dusk – technology, communication, social network concept
Better Business Bureau Serving Connecticut wants people to be wary of a text you may get from a wrong number.
“It’s almost like they met you at the bar the night before. They send this text and you’re like, ‘Do I know this person? I feel like I know this person,'” said Kristen Johnson, BBB of CT director of communications.
The non-profit says the messages may begin with something friendly, “Thanks for sticking up for me,” or “What’s up, you probably don’t remember me, but…”
BBB of CT says in three days last week, three people from our state reported this phishing scam and they’re seeing it happen across the country as well.
Get Connecticut local news, weather forecasts and entertainment stories to your inbox. Sign up for NBC Connecticut newsletters.
They say if you engage or even write back "wrong number," a bot continues to send you links to inappropriate sites or tries to steal your information.
“The best advice we can give you is don’t engage, don’t even write back and say, 'this is the wrong number.' Just delete it. Just swipe and delete,” said Johnson.
BBB said these scammers potentially have technology to steal your phone contacts and continue to scam your friends too, so avoid even opening up the unknown text.
BBB Tips to Stay Safe From Romance/Phishing Scams
- Never click on an unsolicited text message or email.
- Delete the message.
- Take a screen shot of the text and share it with local law enforcement.
- Be skeptical. Strangers on the internet can pretend to be anyone.
- Check for spelling and grammatical errors.
- Guard personal information and photos.
