Yeah, these numbers are staggering. Robo killer says we got 225 billion robo tax last year. Guess what? That's *** 157% increase from the year before. But here's what I want you to look for to protect yourself. This right here is *** scam that I got saying my Amazon account was locked, but I didn't even have to click on the link to know that. Not *** real Amazon link. So instead I just went straight to my Amazon account on my computer and knew it wasn't true. Next, this is *** robot text right here. I got about my paypal being frozen. I get these all the time. I almost clicked on the link. But look here, the number up top doesn't even look real. That's how I know it's not from paypal. Always look at who it's from. This tip is my favorite. Never heard it before. Sometimes you might be signed up to receive Robo text, but you can't remember and you're just not sure if they're legit or not. Try taking the, taking the short little number right here at the top and type it into Google with the word text after it. That should pop up which company it's from? If it's legit. How cool is that back to you?
Rossen Reports: Tricks to beating robotexts
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Updated: 2:40 PM EST Mar 9, 2023
Robotexts are on the rise. You’d think we’d be able to spot them by now, but Robokiller, the text and spam call blocker app, says we got 225 billion of them just last year alone. That’s a 157% increase from the year before.Why the increase? The government has been focused on stopping robocalls, so the spammers and scammers are looking to get you in other ways. Another reason is that not all robotexts are scam-related. The significant increase is due in part to the fact that 70% of messages in November and December were marketing-related, which caused a massive spike in robotexts. Robokiller estimates that, excluding brand marketing messages, Americans would have still received 157 billion robotexts, an 80% increase from 2021 and still a significant one at that.Here are three things to look for in order to beat robotexts: Malicious links: Scammers will send you a fake text, hoping that you’ll click in, and it will open you up to getting your identity and money stolen. If you see a link in a text, pause. If it’s (supposedly) from a company name that you recognize, instead of clicking on it, visit the website from another browser or device.Who it’s from: Pay attention to who is sending you the text. If it’s a number with letters and symbols jumbled in it, you can bet it’s a scam. Short number codes: Sometimes legitimate companies and businesses send you texts. They’re not necessarily scams. But if you can’t remember if you signed up for it, take the short number that the text is from and type it into Google with the word ‘text’ after it. The company will probably pop up. The Robokiller report found a lot of interesting things. For example, in 2022, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) shut down an illegal car warranty scam operation, which dropped those calls from 1 billion in June 2022 to fewer than 7 million by September. The FCC also asked carriers to stop carrying student loan robocalls, which have dropped 33% since the announcement. Want to read more from the report? Click here.
Robotexts are on the rise. You’d think we’d be able to spot them by now, but Robokiller, the text and spam call blocker app, says we got 225 billion of them just last year alone. That’s a 157% increase from the year before.
Why the increase? The government has been focused on stopping robocalls, so the spammers and scammers are looking to get you in other ways.
Another reason is that not all robotexts are scam-related. The significant increase is due in part to the fact that 70% of messages in November and December were marketing-related, which caused a massive spike in robotexts.
Robokiller estimates that, excluding brand marketing messages, Americans would have still received 157 billion robotexts, an 80% increase from 2021 and still a significant one at that.
Here are three things to look for in order to beat robotexts:
- Malicious links: Scammers will send you a fake text, hoping that you’ll click in, and it will open you up to getting your identity and money stolen. If you see a link in a text, pause. If it’s (supposedly) from a company name that you recognize, instead of clicking on it, visit the website from another browser or device.
- Who it’s from: Pay attention to who is sending you the text. If it’s a number with letters and symbols jumbled in it, you can bet it’s a scam.
- Short number codes: Sometimes legitimate companies and businesses send you texts. They’re not necessarily scams. But if you can’t remember if you signed up for it, take the short number that the text is from and type it into Google with the word ‘text’ after it. The company will probably pop up.
The Robokiller report found a lot of interesting things. For example, in 2022, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) shut down an illegal car warranty scam operation, which dropped those calls from 1 billion in June 2022 to fewer than 7 million by September.
The FCC also asked carriers to stop carrying student loan robocalls, which have dropped 33% since the announcement. Want to read more from the report? Click here.
