Do you guys think this is a scam?
Do you guys think this is a scam?
Url looks suss. Seems kinda sophisticated for the usual ups fishing scam. Here's the text message I got leading here.
"Wishing you a bright and sunny day!" Lol, I almost want to help this guy by explaining that UPS and American companies in general have disdain for their customers and would never wish them to have anything that would not benefit the company.
Very well known scam. Some details that give it away:
(1) They used a url shortener that doesn't let you see the actual domain. (bit.ly)
(2) Website domain is not legitimate.
USPS's website is usps.com. If the URL doesn't end in usps.com (meaning usps.fakewebsite.com is still fake) then it's not legitimate.
(3) Tone: The USPS doesn't text you like you're their friend.
(4) The number they're texting you from is not an SMS short code number (usually 5 digits). Instead you're getting a text from a 10 digit number with an area code, which means it's a person/individual rather than an application or service.
source: used to work as cyber sec analyst
A tangent:
What annoys me is when legitimate companies use non-standard URLs in their hyperlinked emails. For example, if you get a message from Facebook taking you to facebookemail.com, that's actually a domain controlled by the real Facebook.
They're essentially teaching their customers to click on links in emails which use unfamiliar URLs which are superficially similar to the usual one.
Why the fuck did you click a link like that in the first place? That first message is basically screaming at you that it's a phishing attempt.
Best opsec is to delete and block, ideally without opening it at all to avoid read receipts (if that's a function in your phone). If you think it might be legit, go to the website on your own and find a way to confirm independently. If that's still too much to follow through with, at the very least don't click random links sent to you unprompted.
I got one of these today too.
Something tells me the USPS wouldn't be using bit.ly.
I think there's now a generation gap between kids today and people who were routinely sent to tubgirl and goatse during the internet's formal years.
If your URL is fucky, it's a scam. If you clicked one, they'll send you more.
You clicked a random link from an sms message?
That’s a bold move, Cotton.
Bruh, just look at the address bar. That is not a USPS domain. Obviously it's a scam.
- 3rd party URL shortener, immediate red flag
- Non-USPS.com domain once you tapped it (which you shouldn't have)
- National service sending from a South Carolina area code instead of a short code or a toll free number
- Does USPS even have your phone number tied to your delivery address?
PSA you can check a bitly link without clicking it by using their link checker: https://support.bitly.com/hc/en-us/p/link-checker
Look at the URL. Of course it's a scam.
Report this at https://reportfraud.ftc.gov/.
Also, because they’re using Bitly for URL obfuscation report it to them at https://bitly.com/pages/trust/report-abuse.
For any of the fake domains you run into report it to both the registrar of the domain as well as the owner of the actual IP address it points to.
Aside from all of the red flags already listed in other comments....are you even expecting a package to be delivered? I almost never receive a package that I don't expect
One thing to note, aside from all the other inconsistencies, that tracking number does not follow the standard tracking number format for a USPS package. The USPS website describes their different tracking numbers for their different services in the FAQ at the bottom of their tracking page. https://tools.usps.com/go/TrackConfirmAction_input
Yes, and usps is never going to text you. Be careful about what links you click. This link could have passed through tracking and flagged your number as someone who clicks their links. At the very least they know it's an active phone number, and at worst they start targeting you more frequently (or sell a list to other people to target you).
This is why you shouldn't ever respond, click on, interact with, or even read scam messages. Same goes for emails btw. Disable auto-loading images in emails since that is another way they can track active emails.
But, good job second guessing the message and asking about it. I mean it. Some scams rely on you not talking to anyone so it is good to ask others if you're unsure/uncomfortable. This is especially true if someone tries to tell you not to talk to anyone else since that is a common practice scammers use as well and should be an instant red flag
Yes.
100% scam
I get these scam texts all the time. It's 100% a scam, and now that you've clicked it, you'll probably get a bunch more scam in the near future, so be extra cautious.
An official company is not going to use an URL shortener.
That's only used when you try to hide the URL, or if you think the user is going to type it out manually.
It is a scam.
I've recieved similar texts from Amaz0n.
Not kidding about the 0 instead of an o.
The also use the 'Wishing you a bright and sunny day!' line.
...
The url is bullshit, and nobody, literally no legit mail or pacel service is going to use bit.ly.
Make your life easier: NEVER click on any link in an email.
In this case, if you are actually waiting for a USPS package, go to usps.com, enter your package number manually, and see if it tracks.100% yeah. The browser URL doesn't have ups in it.
UPS and American companies in general
But this is USPS, which isn't an American company, it's a US independent agency.
Their mandate isn't (AFAIK...) to make a profit, but rather to serve the mail requirements of a very large country.
Personally, my experiences with USPS have been generally positive, from passports for infants to free change-of-address forwarding service to tracking down quasi-scam products from Amazon. YMMV though.
Kinda sad to see some of the comments being assholes about OP clicking a link. Like, how do y'all think phishing works? People click. Get over it and just educate people on why not to. Explain the risks and how to spot the scam. Do any of you think this person would have clicked if they knew for sure? Or if they knew the issues that can occur? It's super easy to sit in the comments and act holier than cos you knew and they didn't.
Yeah it's a scam. Most people get these quite often. Your Telecom company probably blocks these quite often. Someone else went through all the details of the scam like the fake domain, where to report etc.
Some of these links allow people to track who clicks. If you click once, they can provide data that you did and they can target you using other numbers and other scams. Might not be the case with this one, but they can also get your device details from accessing the site, using google analytics, ip data, geolocation stuff, etc. Or they ask you to allow notifications but the notifications are also scams.
General rule of thumb is don't click when you don't trust the source. If youre sceptical, just walk away for a bit. Cops, the government and postmen know where you live, and they won't miss you. It is always okay to trust your gut, be it in a call, messaging platform or on the Web.
100% scam
Kek you clicked that?
Look man, if you want to understand what's going on there's a really short (even for my ADHD) video right here:
The guy here explains exactly why not to do that - https://bitly.com/98K8eH
Hell my paranoid ass would reinstall windows and change all my passwords after visiting an obvious scam site like that.
In addition to everything else: for weeks our building has been receiving packages addressed only with a name, a number, S, and the zip. The name is someone who has never lived here and may not exist. There's no apartment number. Our street doesn't start with S, if anything the S is for South. It's obviously some kind of fraud, because what's in the packages are little metal clips to clamp the starting tape holding stuff on a pallet. Not anything for residential use. They ship from various Amazon warehouses but through USPS. We can't get the mailman or Amazon people to return them and the Amazon return process only works if the unwanted package is addressed to you, not some random name.
But I'm now sure as hell that USPS isn't going to let anything as trivial as an unclear address stop them from delivering the package SOMEWHERE. Anything to call it "delivered."
Yes, I get them constantly.
If you want to be extra sure, just contact USPS directly.
Yeah. I was getting these almost daily for a few months. Never responded to them and never missed any expected packages.
As others have said, that is definitely a link to a fake website.
Yes
Yes. Don't click on that link, it's been obscured using an URL shortener
ITT things that make my chest tighten painfully
Even if this is true - which it isn't - it's much better to let packages be sent back to the sender than to take responsibility upon yourself.
your first clue was the link in the next - no shipper is going to miss having its branding in the url. the second if that the url it redirects to its obviously random bs and if you do a whois you see its def not owned by usps.
got a few of these phishing attempts myself over thanksgiving. holiday gift shopping season has begun, the scammers want to catch the less savy among us.
They can't figure out your address, but somehow they can figure out your email?
- You expecting a package? If no - scam. If yes proceed to 2.
- Check the tracking code on the carriers site or on a multi track site and see what the status says.
Ive had packages come to the building and the postal worker not knowing which box to put it in so it went back to the post office and the tracking indicating unsuccessful delivery due to unknown address (or something similar). In these cases, call or visit the post office doing the delivery or the company. The tracking number will be the key piece of information you can tie to a partial address. In smaller communities, this wont even happen as just placing a name on a package can get a successful delivery since the postal worker knows everyone in the community.
It is 100% a scam. I get texts with this exact text all the time with shady links going to a fake USPS website.
Just write in the nearest Subway/McDonald's address.
Super duper scam. You should very wary of clicking ANY link from a number you do not recognize for any information you do not expect to receive.
Hope you didn't click that link. You probably downloaded a malicious payload.
"The .cyou domain is a generic top-level domain (gTLD) that's short for "see you". It's intended for social media influencers, creative directors, and other tech-savvy people who want to be seen online."
LOL - seems legit...
I get a few of these every week. I used to just report and block, but lately I’ve been sending them messages that the delivery is important and that I’ll pay to have it expedited if they request money from me at <insert link to shock websites like meatspin or goatse>.
Their messages are probably automated without anyone monitoring it, and I haven’t gotten a response yet, but I’d like to think that a few of them have been tricked into staring at a photo of some dude’s giant asshole.
Lmao I got this exact scam message and reported as spam as you should
Scam. I get messages like this everyday and I know I don't have any USPS packages coming. Also a bit.ly link is super suss
You should download the USPS Informed Delivery app and sign up for email notifications about your mail. These texts are scams and the government never contacts you outside of snail mail/email unless you specifically sign up for another way.
In case of USPS, the only URL that looks suss is "usps.com", what are you thinking about? :)