Scams are omnipresent! Massachusetts residents deal with bad people attempting to steal their identity, money, or information on regular. Email scams, phone scams, text message scams, social media scams and more are now part of regular life in America. The downside of the tech age, I suppose.

USPS Warning MA Residents Of Widespread 'Smishing' Scam

What is SMISHING?

SMS-phishing is a text-message based variation of the email-based scams that have been a staple for malicious actors for many years.

SMS-phishing uses social engineering to leverage your trust to steal your information but, unlike more traditional email-based scams, SMS-phishing utilizes text and mobile messaging services such as WhatsApp and iMessage, to defraud victims.

SMS-phishing is an attractive tactic to cybercriminals because victims are often under the misconception that their text messages are somehow more secure than their emails.-mass.gov

I had someone attempt to phish me for information via text message the other day.

Michael Martel, a postal inspector for USPS, has a new warning for Massachusetts residents concerning "smishing".

FYI: the USPS does NOT send texts from alternate strange email addresses.

“They are looking for your feedback or you to click on that link that is contained in the text message,” Martel explained. “And they’re looking for your personal identifying information to commit identity theft.

To infect your device or computer with malware. Or they might also take you to a link for a payment of some sort, claiming a delivery fee. Know that the postal service does not charge for a re-delivery fee.”

“It would typically come from a five-digit phone number,” Martel said. “The postal service will not send you a link in a text message. And the postal service will not send you an unsolicited text message. You have to sign up for those alerts.” -westernmassnews.com

Things you can do to avoid being a victim of a smishing attempt include:

• Never click links, reply to text messages or call numbers you don't recognize.
• Do not respond, even if the message requests that you "text STOP" to end messages.
• Delete all suspicious texts.
• Make sure your smart device OS and security apps are updated to the latest version.
• Consider installing anti-malware software on your device for added security.
• Protect any sensitive personal information - bank accounts, health records, social media accounts, etc. - by using multi-factor authentication to access it.