Identifying Phishing Scams in text messages

Got the same message exactly with the same amount but only on the iPad and not on the iPhone, I usually reply (on iPhone) that I am calling police before deleting and reporting and it usually stops the scammers.

Kriistiina89 wrote:

I've of course Deleted and reported Junk but i have NEVER got anything like this BF.. I get a lot of fake auto e-transfers from …

PS: Given the fake transfers, shut off automatic acceptance of Apple Cash payments, too. That’ll entirely block another whole class of scams you probably haven’t seen yet.

Scams? The scammers will send you a cash payment from a compromised payment card, and will request or demand some or all of that payment back. The payment card provider will eventually claw back the fraudulent payment, and you’ll be out whatever you sent to the scammers.

Shutting off the default auto-acceptance feature in Apple Cash means they can’t even start that scam.

You can manually accept payments from those you do expect to be sending Apple Cash to you.

I just received a text saying:

1350 Notification : A charges of 350.49 was made using your ID at Apple Store Through Apple Pay. Contact 1(8**) **5-***7 now if you didn't authorize it.

I assumed it was a scam but found nothing on Snopes so I came here. I’m so glad all of you have posted your experiences.

[Edited by Moderator]

Dskay211 wrote:

I just received a text saying:

1350 Notification : A charges of 350.49 was made using your ID at Apple Store Through Apple Pay. Contact 1(8**) **5-***7 now if you didn't authorize it.

I assumed it was a scam but found nothing on Snopes so I came here. I’m so glad all of you have posted your experiences.

[Edited by Moderator]

Hello~ Yes…it’s a scam. I treat all texts of this nature as a scam. Scammers just doing what scammers do…

~Katana-San~

heyheylissa wrote:

…I’ve never received anything like this before is this fraudulent?…

It’s a poorly-crafted scam, yes.

Ignore it.

Want details? See the previous ~13 pages of replies, here.

Maybe mute all unknown message senders too if you want, so that these scams don’t disrupt your day.

Here are a very few of the many other common scams: Recognize and avoid social engineering schemes including phishing messages, phony support calls, and other scams - Apple Support

Phishing text received:

Wednesday, June 25, 2025

+13***910:APPLE PAY: Auto debit approved USD 479.70 after taxes for apple i-tunes subscription Apple auto pay, if not you contact +18***176 2:57 PM

[Edited by Moderator]

the1stdm wrote:

Phishing text received:

Wednesday, June 25, 2025

+13******:APPLE PAY: Auto debit approved USD 479.70 after taxes for apple i-tunes subscription Apple auto pay, if not you contact [number redacted] 2:57 PM

So I hope you deleted it and reported as a scam.

the1stdm wrote:

There is nothing personal in the original post. Those numbers are from the scammer not mine.

The reason they are redacted is that Google will scrape web pages and the next thing you know you would have a Gemini AI result on the top of a search request telling you to call the number if you received that message. Unfortunately it happens with Tech Support scams where fraudulent numbers are posted in search results and users have fallen victim to those. Google does not take any responsibility for the search results.

For any message/email, the recommendation is to NEVER call any provided number or even click a link and enter personal information. Apple does not sent those SMS messages like that to you and if you ever have any Apple related concern and want to call, then your would use their official Support Page here:

Contact Apple Support - Apple Support

the1stdm wrote:

There is nothing personal in the original post. Those numbers are from the scammer not mine.

Hello~ Look at it this way …reposting the scammers information perpetuates the scam. You do not want to be part of that now do you…certainly not.

~Katana-San~

the1stdm wrote:

There is nothing personal in the original post. Those numbers are from the scammer not mine.

It’s also possible that the number does not still belong to the scammer. Same for email addresses. These things change. Sometimes quickly. Sometimes over years.

And yes, search engines will scrape postings and particularly active threads (which is how folks keep arriving at this thread) and will absolutely offer up that data in their AI slop summaries, whether the posting is serious or sarcastic or spam or simply wrong. And yes, some people will either find the number here, or will find it in the AI slop, and will call it.

Servant of Cats wrote:

MrHoffman wrote:

And yes, some people will either find the number here, or will find it in the AI slop, and will call it.

For years, the phone companies told people to only use (555) area code numbers in songs and other fictional works. Why? (555) is reserved for the phone companies themselves, and there are few numbers in it.

That’s evolved over the years, too. Only 555-0100 through 555-0199 are now specifically reserved for fictional use; the other numbers have been reserved for actual assignment. (Details)

Similarly, there are reserved domain names (example.com, example.org, example.net), reserved IP address ranges

192.0.2.0/24 Test-Net-1, 198.51.100.0/24 Test-Net-2, 203.0.113.0/24 Test-Net-3), and other similar reservations for other things-that-should-not-actually-be-working usage.

mxswallow wrote:

I just got this, too. Same amount: $143.95. Sender was cr********2@icloud.com.

This and similar spam campaigns send massive numbers of messages, and the spam will continue for as long as the spam is profitable for the scammers.

The third-party Bouncer app can reduce text spam, and this one would be easy to add to the filters.

TCL0310 wrote:

I have gotten this text message 2 days in a row about the $143.95 charge. It only shows on my Apple Watch, not my iPhone.

You probably have a spam blocker on your iPhone.

These phishing messages are sent by the hundreds of thousands daily. This is not some kid down the block; it is a massive, worldwide criminal enterprise.

I received the same fraudulent text message this morning for a suspicious charge of 143.95. I have never used apple pay. I don't understand why these bad actors can't be stopped. Charged with the crime and go through the crimminal process . It's just getting worse all over. If these folks can steal titles from homeowners and get a way with it, hold businneses hostage until ransoms are paid, and on and on. this world is in a mess.

Oceans47 wrote:

I received the same fraudulent text message this morning for a suspicious charge of 143.95. I have never used apple pay. I don't understand why these bad actors can't be stopped.

For the same reasons we still have muggers, drug dealers and shoplifters. It's even harder with these digital criminals because they are frequently in other countries.

Charged with the crime and go through the crimminal process.

Who are they going to charge? Who is going to do the charging? Which country?

If these folks can steal titles from homeowners and get a way with it, hold businneses hostage until ransoms are paid, and on and on.

That's a very different type of crime. Work with your local officials to put systems in place to make it more difficult to change a title (my city has done this). If you will be away from your house for an extended time, have a friend or relative make sure it stays looking lived in.

this world is in a mess.

I agree. But spam texts are so far down the list of things that are wrong.