Americans reported losing $470 million to scams that started with text messages, according to new data from the Federal Trade Commission.
The most commonly seen text scam was the fake package delivery scam. Victims receive alerts about a supposed issue with an incoming delivery and a link.
The FTC said other common text scams involved “fraud alert” messages sent to consumers warning about a suspicious purchase or an issue with their bank, warnings about fake unpaid tolls with a link to pay them and “wrong number” scams that start as a seemingly misdirected message.
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"Wrong number scams often evolve into a conversation with romantic undertones that can lead to investment and other scams," the FTC said.
Other common money scams include “task scams,” which the FTC said involve promises of online work requiring people to complete a series of online tasks and end up with requests for people to invest their own money.
