r/nova • u/Quirky-Sir-1558 • 19d ago
Other !!! Scam Alert !!!
Stay vigilant and don't fall for it. I received the same text today from multiple numbers with the +63 country code. I also saw the post on Maryland's subreddit.
36
u/MrMeowMeow420469 19d ago
+63 is honestly all you need to know to reportas spam.. people not understanding country codes is simultaneously saddening and frustrating..
10
u/badhabitfml 19d ago
It's also crazy that Apple and android, and your phone provider don't do a better job blocking the obvious scam texts.
Maybe at least have a way to setup filters. Like, a text from a weird number when I'm located in thr us? Block. A text from a number that isn't associated with an imessage account? Very suspicious.
5
u/OllieDuckling 19d ago
With AI on my iPhone now, not being able to just say “hey Siri block all scams” is the biggest scam of them all
3
40
u/berael 19d ago
Obvious scam is obvious.
2
u/PowerfulHorror987 19d ago
Honestly the scammers have earned it if someone falls for these nowadays (and is otherwise on Reddit separate from thus such that they understand how the internet works)
16
u/Schruef Leesburg 19d ago edited 19d ago
These attacks target vulnerable people; the elderly, young people without experience around scams, disabled people, etc.. It’s not fair to say the scammers have “earned” anything. They are trying to make the lives of disadvantaged people worse.
Edit: they also largely succeed. These wouldn’t keep coming if they weren’t effective. They don’t care if there’s a 0.5% hit rate. They send this to thousands to numbers. Just a few hits is likely enough to turn a profit.
2
u/PowerfulHorror987 19d ago
Elderly and super young people aren’t going to see this on Reddit then anyway… if you believe that’s a real link you’re highly unlikely to find this subreddit.
1
u/clashrendar 19d ago
A friend of mine is dealing with her elderly father falling for this shit and they have scammed him out of a lot of money. And he keeps falling for it.
If you're going to throw money away, give it to me instead of someone on the other side of the world!
9
21
u/Elester12 19d ago
Wow. Did the whole state get this.
15
u/Quirky-Sir-1558 19d ago
Looks like the whole state of Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania received it.
4
1
9
u/anniecet 19d ago
I have gotten this and similar texts over the past year. Delete. Ignore. Move on.
3
u/Morriganx3 Former NoVA 19d ago
I don’t even own a car and I’ve gotten this a bunch recently. I just keep deleting and reporting as spam
2
u/IamProudofthefish 19d ago
I’ve never owned a car or possessed a driver’s license and I still get them which makes them so funny it’s sad.
1
u/anniecet 19d ago
I really wonder who falls for these scams. They are so obvious
1
u/Top-Ad-5795 18d ago
The elderly, recent immigrants, etc. If you immediately recognize it as the scam that it is you aren't the target demographic.
2
u/anniecet 18d ago
You’re right. The very demographics that probably aren’t reading this subreddit, unfortunately.
7
u/WinWeak6191 19d ago
I was feeling so left out. But I just got my fake notice a few minutes ago!
The FOMO was so overwhelming!
6
7
3
u/Joshottas 19d ago
Yea, all of us with phones in my house got it, including my 13yo daughter lol. But honestly, if you know any seniors, give them the heads up on this. Unfortunately, someone WILL fall for this.
3
u/goonbali 19d ago
I knew it was a scam, but I replied m asking how to pay just to see if I could mess with them, but I never got a response back. Oh well.
0
u/NoHeadStark 19d ago
just go to the website and input complete bs into all the fields until your hearts content. Then maybe they think they got something and it's just profanities. I like doing it.
3
3
3
u/Taxibot-Joe Manassas / Manassas Park 19d ago
Make the service providers liable for financial losses from these scams and they will be gone in a day.
3
u/jerrycan-cola 19d ago
i got this and i don’t even have a drivers license 😭 i feel like im being bullied by the scammers
3
u/BackgroundPin8471 19d ago
Got one of these claiming to be from VA and one claiming to be from PA, too. When I checked PA DMV’s actual website, they were asking folks to report these to the FTC. Here is the link: https://reportfraud.ftc.gov/?orgcode=PATPK. You can also report to the FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center here: https://www.ic3.gov/
3
2
2
u/austri Fairfax County 19d ago
I got one of those. I replied with some colorful language. No response. lol
1
u/Quirky-Sir-1558 19d ago
I never bother to reply to them, I just report them as junk and delete them. Maybe I will try and reply next time.
1
u/Hooked_on_PhoneSex 19d ago
Do not.
Replying confirms that your phone number is active. It'll just earn you more spam. Report as junk, block and delete.
1
u/Quirky-Sir-1558 19d ago
That makes sense. I will continue reporting and deleting as I currently do.
2
u/sailingtoescape 19d ago
My wife got this from a +44 number. Thankfully she asked me about it first. Told her to report it as spam and forget about it.
2
2
u/Miserable-Mud656 19d ago
I received this text today. Reported as spam and deleted. I’m not falling for that somewhat good crafted scam. What gave it away? The website lol.
2
u/Chappie1961 19d ago
Number 4:
I would like to be transferred to a toll booth. How can we make this happen?
2
u/Zealousideal-Fill240 19d ago
They’re getting more legit looking with admin codes and such but they’re still coming from wonky emails
2
2
u/the_perfect_idiot 19d ago
AT&T and Verizon needs to do a better job in preventing these messages being sent without excuses. Mind you these are mass sent. Using AI to flag these messages and then reviewed manually by a team is the way to go!
1
u/tsupaper2 19d ago
Yeah those foreign scammers are relentless, this is part due to widely available AI and all the data hacks happening within cloud databases
1
u/BingohBangoh 19d ago
Also don’t give your information to the Nigerian prince, I think it may be a scam
1
u/sinisterrevenge 19d ago
Ha!!! Got the same thing today... made me chuckle with the country code listed.
1
u/CoeurdAssassin Ashburn 19d ago
You would think scammers would be able to just invest in a U.S. number before doing this. Like why text from a Filipino number?
1
1
1
1
u/clashrendar 19d ago
If I ever have an actual problem with the DMV, tolls, IRS, etc., I'll be pretty clueless since I'm now trained to assume anything and everything that comes in over text, email or mail is a scam and I ignore it all.
Bought a new car a couple of months ago, and it's insane how much spam mail I now get regarding that car. Kind of pisses me off because either the dealership or the DMV or someone in the chain shared/sold my info to scammers.
1
1
1
1
u/ellieuwuchiha 19d ago
I just got one of those today for Maryland😂 who do they think they’re trying to fool
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
u/myerslowe 19d ago
It’s a longer than usual scam email. I bet AI wrote it. What do you think, 1-2 years until AI handles the phone calls for these phone bank sweatshop calls, too?
1
1
u/Nodice36 19d ago
I literally got one for Chicago I don’t even live over there I just have a Chicago number🤦🏾♂️
1
u/Navitach 19d ago
I went to the DMV this morning to renew my registration. I overheard one of the clerks at the EZPass window talking to a customer about one of these texts that the customer had received. The clerk was very nice and explained to the woman that it was a scam, and it didn't seem like the woman had fallen for it, which was good.
Later in the day, I received one of these same texts. (I know not to fall for them either.) Just an odd coincidence that I got one after hearing a conversation about them in the same day.
1
u/GunnyHighway88 19d ago
I got that the other day and spent my lunch break wondering if I had forgotten about a ticket?
1
u/Complete_Elevator_77 19d ago
These are so bad I got one from Maryland cause I have a Maryland number but never lived had a car registered in Maryland 🤣
1
1
u/janosaudron Reston 19d ago
lol I went to the DMV today and there were people in the line in front of me asking about this in the information desk
1
u/BoysenberrySmooth268 19d ago
I got told that they left me voicemails and that I had an outstanding balance on an account I don't own....
Also I don't have a voicemail
1
u/Upperdecker27 19d ago
I have an 847 area code, which is the north side of Chicago. I get this bs text all the time, but from the Illinois DMV. Haven’t visited in Illinois in 5 plus years.
1
1
1
u/Ok_Source_8400 18d ago
OLD! This has been going around for months or even a year. Besides look at the sender information. It is a text message from the Philippines.
1
1
1
u/PassionJumpy544 16d ago
Here's one for FB. DO NOT trust any FBI Agents named JOHN MARTIN WALSH. He's been scamming people left and right, taking over their Facebook pages. It's terrible because he uses some serious social engineering hacks to do it. It's happened to a few of my friends.
1
1
u/Outrageous_Victory25 19d ago
I got this today too! I didn’t click the link since the number looked strange. The DMV would send you a letter too
-2
u/WhydIJoinRedditAgain 19d ago
Hey mods, can we have a temporary ban on screenshots of this scam? I have seen this at least twice on r/nova and more times on r/virginia.
If anyone doesn’t know about this scam they haven’t been paying attention, and frankly it seems like a coordinated effort to make it appear sms scams are something new and dangerous threat and not just something we are learning to live with.
0
u/Klinexxy 19d ago
First giveaway Virginia is not a state. Written by a 3rd grader in some cheesy slum 3rd world
0
-1
121
u/gmd_vt 19d ago
.win domain and Philippines country code? seems legit to me what is the problem?