Chase: A payment of $1,249.00 to APPLE STORE was attempted on your card ending 4471. If this was NOT you, reply N or call 1-888-xxx-xxxx immediately.
Banks really do send fraud alerts by text, which is exactly why this scam works so well. The message is calm, uses your bank's name, sometimes the last four digits of a real card, and gives you an easy way out: reply N, or call the number.
Short answer: the text may or may not be fake - but the phone call that follows is the scam. Replying "N" or calling the number in the text connects you to the scammer's "fraud team". They will be polite, professional, and will "help you secure your account" by moving your money to a "safe account" or reading back the one-time code the bank just sent you.
The tells
- A phone number inside the text. Real bank alerts say "if this wasn't you, call the number on the back of your card" - they don't include a number, because the number is the attack.
- "Reply Y or N" followed by a call. Some banks do use Y/N replies. None of them then phone you and ask you to move money, install an app, or read out a code.
- The card digits look right. Scammers buy lists of leaked card numbers. Knowing your last four digits proves nothing.
- Urgency and a "safe account". No bank has a "safe account" to move your money into. That phrase alone means scam, every time.
The one rule
Never act on contact you didn't start. Hang up, ignore the text, and call your bank on the number printed on your card or shown in its app. If the alert was real, they'll see it on your account. If it wasn't, you just dodged it. This costs you two minutes and defeats every version of this scam.
Other versions
- A call "from the bank's fraud department" with your bank's real number on caller ID (caller ID is trivially faked).
- "Your account has been accessed from a new device, call us."
- A text that only asks you to reply "STOP" - the reply confirms your number is live and worth calling.
What to do
- Don't reply and don't call the number in the text.
- Open your bank's app or call the number on your card. Ask if there is a fraud alert on your account.
- If you already gave a code, moved money or installed anything: call the bank now and say the words "authorised push payment fraud" - in the UK and EU that triggers a specific process, and speed matters.
- Forward the text to 7726 (free, works with most US, UK and EU carriers).
Not sure? Paste it
Scamed highlights the phrases that give it away and tells you what to do next - before you call anyone.