Though this doesn’t fall into the usual line of topics here at Simple Website Creations, we wanted to address an issue that is still “techy”. First and foremost, we do not consider ourselves specialists in the field of mobile phone texting, or for that matter staying secure in those you communicate with via text. But this issue has become so annoying that we just want to bring it up for the sake of discussion.

Lately many of us keep getting text messages from phone numbers that are not even in our contacts. The message they send could be as little as one word such as “Hello”, to a sentence such as “Is that your black car parked in front of the building?” These texts come from an “Anonymous” source since we don’t know who is sending them. As social people, we want to respond with an answer, but be very wary about doing so.

There really is that chance that it is coming from an old friend, business associate, or someone we are related to, but we just don’t have them listed as a contact in our phone. But the reality is that most likely it is just an anonymous “reach out” to see if you are open to conversing with them.

Why would someone want to message someone they don’t know? If you haven’t figured out the answer to this, it is because there is a good chance that they are initiating a conversation/message to attempt to scam you. Those scammers may try to represent someone you think you should know, and get you to send them money, give personal information, or other nefarious reasons. They may even prey on lonely people, or older individuals by saying that they accidentally texted them instead of someone else, but then may try to befriend the person they accidentally texted and tell a “sob” story and hope to get money, or information.

Defend yourself by making wise and thoughtful decisions. Your real friends, family members, or acquaintances will either be in your contacts already, or they will and should identify who they are if they text you. 

Our advice is to be very wary of any anonymous texts, and never give personal information, or money to anyone unless you have verified the real identity of that person/organization. Don’t get taken by scammers.

Share this information with your friends, family, and associates. Take time to investigate potential scams and don’t allow yourself to be a victim.

Simple Website Creations Inc. is a digital marketing agency specializing in website design, real estate photography, and more. You can give us a call at 218-297-1500 (Ext. 1) or Contact Us today to get started!