Have you recently received a text message from Amazon confirming an amount for an order you didn’t place? If so, it’s very likely that it wasn’t Amazon that contacted you. Amazon text scams are on the rise and attempt to phish for customer information or get users to download malware to their devices.
The Amazon text scam goes something like this…
Out of the blue, you receive a text message that says something along the lines of “Your Amazon purchase of $192.32 has been confirmed. Reply NO to cancel”. The amount provided in the text may be a low amount or a very high amount. Typically, the scammer will start with a low amount, then gradually send you more texts increasing the amount of the purchase if you don’t respond. If you reply NO, the scammer will send you a link to click and refund the amount. The “refund” isn’t actually that, the link will actually send the amount directly to the scammer. Now, the scammer has your bank or credit card information at their disposal.
Why is this a scam?
Amazon will not contact you via text to confirm or decline an order. That’s just not how the order process works and this process would put Amazon in a risky situation. The scammer is hoping that you’ll see the amount, become concerned that you’re being charged for something you didn’t order so you won’t ask questions about the sketchy refund process, then take your “refund” amount.
What to do if you receive an Amazon text scam
If you receive a text message similar to this, do not open it or click any links within the text. Simply delete the text and move on. If you are concerned about the charge stated in the message, go directly to your Amazon app or to the Amazon website and log in. Again, do not click anything inside of the text message, even if it has a link to the website. After logging in directly through Amazon, you’ll be able to see if any charges were made to your account.
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