Scammers are again impersonating the Post Office in an attempt to steal your personal details.
Dodgy delivery texts are among the most common types of scam we've seen this year, and pray upon people who are genuinely waiting for a parcel to arrive.
In some cases, fraudsters use any details you give away to try and scam you again at a later date, often by impersonating your bank.
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Post Office scam text: how it works
The latest Post Office text scam asks you to take action by telling you that your parcel has been sent back to your local branch.
The fraudulent text messages reads: ‘Post Office: Your parcel has been redirected to your local branch due to an unpaid shipping fee.’
It links to a legitimate-looking website, where it asks you to pay for the redelivery of your parcel. Never click on this kind of link or provide any personal data.
We've seen examples of scammers stealing details through these types of scams, before targeting victims again further down the line by posing as their bank. You can find out more in our story about how fraudsters use fake texts to bait victims.
How to report a dodgy delivery text
When we contacted the Post Office about this scam, it told us that it would never send these kind of texts as it doesn't deliver items.
The Post Office is a physical shop where you take your parcels to be sent off, but the parcels are delivered by Royal Mail.
The Post Office and Royal Mail separated in 2012, but scammers are playing on the assumption that some people still believe them to be the same company.
If you need to arrange redelivery for a parcel (for example, if a card is put through your door while you're out), you can do so for free at www.royalmail.com/receiving-mail/redelivery.
If you receive a text like the above, don’t click on any links – these will take you to unsecure websites, where you'll be prompted to share personal information. Instead, report the text by forwarding it to 7726 and block the number.
source https://www.which.co.uk/news/article/how-to-spot-a-dodgy-post-office-delivery-text-aj1xv3c6xhhW