The proverb “a fool and his money are soon parted” has been around for centuries and is just as true today as it was when first penned by English poet and farmer Thomas Tusser in the 16th century.
Crooks today are creative and take full advantage of smartphone technology to get a sucker on the hook, moving away from the more traditional approach favored by bitcoin scammers of feigning to be a young attractive Asian woman randomly reaching out for companionship before tempting you to make an “investment.”
The U.S. Postal Service is among the most favored avenues to secure a mark, with scammers sending unsolicited text notifications to recipients of a problem with package delivery. In fact, according to Fox Business, which cited a report from software company Guardio, the USPS was “one of the most imitated brands in phishing scams during the second quarter.”
The generic text typically reads: “Your package has arrived at the distribution facility but we are unable to deliver it due to incomplete address information.”
The message instructs the person to click on a provided link to update their address, but if you receive such a text, it’s probably not coming from the U.S. Postal Service.
The USPS has gone so far as to warn customers “to be wary of mobile text messages with an unfamiliar or strange web link that indicates a USPS delivery requires a response from you,” the network reported.
“If you never signed up for a USPS tracking request for a specific package, then don’t click the link! This type of text message is a scam called smashing,” the USPS said last month.
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Other common lures include sayings such as “your account has been suspended”, “there is suspicious activity on your account”, and “there is a package waiting for you at the Post Office.”
Bad actors are using such deceptive texts to try and get personal information from victims such as account usernames and passwords, Social Security number, date of birth, credit and debit card numbers or personal identification numbers, which will help them commit crimes such as financial fraud.
Karin Zilberstein, vice president of product at Guardio, told Fox Business that these scams are the “natural, albeit very disturbing, outcome of the rise in online shopping.”
“As more people order goods and services online, hackers exploit this trend by creating new, relevant scams,” Zilberstein said.
The USPS uses 5-digit short codes to send and receive an SMS to and from mobile phones when issuing package notifications, and will not send customers text messages or e-mails without a customer first requesting the service with a tracking number, according to the report. The agency also said any message sent will never contain a link.
If you are the target of a suspected phishing attempt, report it to the USPS.
A USPS spokesperson told FOX Business, “The Postal Inspection Service, the federal law enforcement and security arm of the United States Postal Service, not only investigates crimes committed towards the Postal Service, its employees, and customers but takes an active role in crime prevention messaging to Postal customers.”
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Tom Tillison grew up in Maryland before moving to Central Florida as a young teen. It is in the Sunshine State that he honed both his passion for politics and his writing skills. Tillison also contributes to BizPac Review.
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