I got a message and I'm not sure it's real

You don’t have to work out whether it’s real. Leave the message alone. Check in the app, on the site you type in yourself, or by calling a number you already have. If the problem is real, you’ll see it there.

On the phone with them, or they’re on your computer right now: Someone is on the line or on my screen right now. Already sent money or gave something out: skip to what to do.

If it’s happening now

A text. Don’t tap the link, reply, or call the number in it. To check, open the app or site it’s about yourself. Then report it with your phone’s Report Junk option, or forward it to 7726, and delete it. If you already paid or typed something in, take a screenshot first.

An email. Don’t click, open an attachment, reply, or call a number in it, even when the sender’s address looks right. Open the app, or type the site’s address yourself.

A call or a voicemail. Hang up. Don’t press any numbers on a recording, and don’t call the number in a voicemail. Caller ID can show any name or number. Call the number on your card, your statement, or the company’s site you typed in yourself.

A message from a friend’s or relative’s account. Don’t answer in that chat. Call them from your phone’s Phone app, on the number already saved there, not the call button inside the chat app. Accounts get taken over, and whoever has one can read every message you’ve sent each other.

A pop-up with a phone number. Don’t call it. Real security warnings don’t ask you to call a number. Close the browser. If it won’t close, hold the power button until the screen goes dark. If someone was already connected to your computer, turn it off the same way. More: A pop-up or call says your computer has a problem.

A letter. Letters can be fake too. Don’t call the number printed on it or scan a QR code on it. Look up the number on the agency’s or company’s own website, typed in yourself.

What to say

• I'm going to hang up and call you back on the number I have.

• I got a text saying there's a problem with my account. It might not be from you. Can you see anything on your end?

• Hey, I just got a message from your account asking me for a code. Was that you?

If something already left your hands

You sent money. Call your bank or the payment company now, on the number on your card or inside its app. Ask them to stop or reverse it, and get a case number. If you sent it yourself, they may call it authorized and say no. Ask anyway, and ask for any no in writing. If it’s still no, file a complaint at consumerfinance.gov/complaint. Then: I paid or sent money.

You bought gift cards. Call the company on the card, on the number on its back or on its own website. Say it was used in a scam, and keep the cards and the receipts. Then: I paid with gift cards.

You used a Bitcoin ATM, sent crypto, or handed over cash or gold. Crypto: call the number on the machine or your receipt, or report it in the exchange’s app. Cash or gold: call your local police, and 911 if someone is coming to collect. Then: crypto and Bitcoin ATMs, cash and gold.

You gave a code, a password, a card number, or your Social Security number. Bank or card: call the number on your card first. Any other account: change that password now, in the app or on the site you type in yourself, from a phone or computer they never touched. Used it anywhere else? Change it there too. Then: I gave out a code, password, or card number.

They connected to your computer or phone. Turn it off: hold the power button. Use a different phone or computer to call your bank. Then: I let someone control my computer.

You tapped a link but typed nothing in. Close it. If a file downloaded or it asked you to install something, don’t open it. On a Windows computer, open Windows Security, choose Virus & threat protection, then Quick scan.

You replied. Stop there. A reply on its own doesn’t give them money or access. Expect more messages, and treat each one the same way.

If money left by wire or crypto, file at ic3.gov at the same time as the first call. Once the calls are made, save screenshots of the messages and report it at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. Anyone who then offers to get your money back for a fee is running a second scam: Someone offers to get my money back.

What it looks like

8:05 p.m. A text just arrived: "Your WhatsApp code: 482-913. Don't share this code with others." You didn't ask for one. Then your friend Dana's WhatsApp messages you.

WhatsApp Dana Whitfield

8:05 PM

See you Sunday

See you then

Hiii sorry to bother you

I sent a 6 digit code to your number by mistake, can you send it to me? I need it urgently

Oh no problem. What's it for?

My account logged out and it won't let me back in without it. Please hurry it expires in 10 min

It's Dana's account, with your old chats right above. What do you do?

• Send her the code. It's her account, and your history with her is right there
• Call Dana from your phone's Phone app, on the number saved there
• Ask her something only Dana would know, then decide
• Ignore it and delete the text with the code

Show the answers

• Wrong move Send her the code. It's her account, and your history with her is right there A code sent to your phone is for your account, not hers. Whoever asked is trying to sign in to WhatsApp as you.
• Best move Call Dana from your phone's Phone app, on the number saved there A regular call rings Dana's phone. The call button inside WhatsApp rings whoever has her account. If she's been hacked, she needs to know. Either way, the code stays with you.
• Wrong move Ask her something only Dana would know, then decide Whoever has her account can read years of your messages with her. A right answer proves nothing, and the code still isn't hers.
• Okay Ignore it and delete the text with the code Your account stays yours. But Dana may not know someone has hers, and whoever has it is probably messaging her other friends too.

A code that lands on your phone is for your account. Don't read or forward it to anyone who asks, even from a friend's account. Call the friend from your phone's Phone app, on the number you already have.

Last night around 9:45 you set up a new Windows laptop and signed in to your email on it. This morning, this is waiting.

Security alert

H

Halver Mail <no-reply@accounts.halvermail.com>

To: pat.morrow@halvermail.com

Thu, Oct 1, 9:48 PM

A new sign-in on Windows

pat.morrow@halvermail.com

We noticed a new sign-in to your Halver account on a Windows device. If this was you, you don't need to do anything. If not, we'll help you secure your account.

Windows · Chrome
Thursday, October 1, 9:48 PM CDT

Check activity

What do you do?

• Nothing. That was you
• Open your email account yourself and look at recent sign-ins
• Tap Check activity and sign in to confirm it was you

Show the answers

• Best move Nothing. That was you The device and the time match what you did last night. It's telling you about your own sign-in.
• Okay Open your email account yourself and look at recent sign-ins Safe, and you'll see the new laptop there. Not needed when the alert matches what you did. It's the right move when it doesn't.
• Wrong move Tap Check activity and sign in to confirm it was you This one is probably real. Fakes look the same, and their button opens a fake sign-in page. You can't tell which from the email, and you don't need to confirm what you already know.

Real sign-in alerts are common. If it matches what you just did, you're done. If it doesn't, open the account yourself, not through the email.

A text said a $1,149.00 Ferncart order shipped and gave a number to call if it wasn't you. You didn't order anything, so you searched for Ferncart's number instead.

ferncart customer service number

Sponsored
ferncart-helpdesk.com
Ferncart Customer Service | 24/7 Live Agent
Order problems, refunds, cancellations. Call now: (469) 555-0174

ferncart.com › help › contact
Contact Us | Ferncart Help
Get help with an order, a return, or your account. Sign in to see your orders.

What do you do?

• Call the number in the first result
• Open the Ferncart app, or type ferncart.com yourself, and check your orders
• Tap the second result and find the number on that page

Show the answers

• Wrong move Call the number in the first result Anyone can buy that spot. The FTC says scammers pay for search ads so their numbers show up first. Sponsored means someone paid, not that it's Ferncart.
• Best move Open the Ferncart app, or type ferncart.com yourself, and check your orders If there's no $1,149 order in your account, there's no order, and you never needed a number. If something is there that you didn't buy, use the help in the app or on the site.
• Okay Tap the second result and find the number on that page Probably Ferncart's real site. But copies show up in search results too, and you'd be checking the address while rattled. The app, or the address typed in yourself, skips the guessing.

Searching for the number feels like checking. It's still a stranger's number until it comes from your card, your statement, your account, or a site you typed in yourself.

What they’ll ask for

Whatever the story, the ask is usually one of these.

“Pay the fee to release your package.” “Your toll is overdue.” “Settle your balance today.” Check with the toll agency, carrier, or company on a site you type in yourself. If you owe something, it’s there. Already typed in your card number: I gave out a code, password, or card number.

“Call us within 24 hours to cancel this charge.” Open the account. The charge is there or it isn’t. The number in the message reaches whoever sent it. No account with them? There’s nothing to cancel.

“Read me the code we just sent.” “I sent my code to your number by mistake.” “Tap Approve on the alert you just got.” Don’t read or forward a code to anyone who contacts you. Don’t approve a sign-in you didn’t start. A code sent to your phone is for your account.

“Sign in to verify your account.” Open the app or type the address yourself. Don’t sign in from a link in the message.

“Let me connect to your computer and fix it.” “Let me connect so I can send your refund.” Real tech companies don’t contact you to say your computer has a problem. A refund doesn’t need control of your computer. Don’t install anything they name.

“Move your money to a safe account.” No bank protects your money by asking you to move it somewhere else. Someone says they’re from your bank.

“Buy gift cards.” “Use a Bitcoin ATM.” “We’ll send a courier for the cash.” No real bank, agency, or company asks for any of these. Hang up. If someone is coming to collect, don’t hand anything over. Call 911.

“Don’t tell anyone. Your bank might be in on it.” Tell someone today. A real fraud department doesn’t ask you to keep it secret.

“You have 30 minutes.” Check anyway. Opening the app or calling the number on your card takes a few minutes, and a real deadline will show up there too.

Where to find the real number

Use a number or address that came from somewhere other than the message.

• Bank or card: the back of your card, your statement, or the bank’s app.
• A store, app, or service: your account in its app, or its website typed in yourself. Your order history shows whether an order exists.
• A government agency: its website, typed in yourself, such as irs.gov, ssa.gov, or medicare.gov.
• A friend or relative: the number saved in your phone before any of this started.

Not from the message, caller ID, a number the caller reads out, or the top of the search results. Scammers buy search ads so their numbers show up first.

A familiar voice, a caller ID, a polished email, or someone knowing your details proves nothing.

Pages for specific messages

• Your bank: Someone says they’re from your bank
• The IRS, Social Security, the police, or another agency: Someone says they’re from the government
• Taxes or a refund: A message about your taxes or a refund
• Medicare or your health plan: A call about Medicare or your health coverage
• A package, an account, or a payment, by text: A text about a package, account, or payment
• A toll or a parking fine: A text says you owe a toll or parking fine
• Your computer: A pop-up or call says your computer has a problem
• An email that wants you to sign in or pay: Emails that want you to sign in, pay, or open something
• A family member who needs money: Someone claiming to be family needs money
• WhatsApp, Telegram, or Signal: WhatsApp, Telegram, and Signal messages
• A friend’s account or a stranger on social media: Social media: hacked friends, fake profiles, and what you share
• An investment: An investment that can’t lose
• A job: A job offer that seems too easy
• A website or online store: Is this store real?