By Daily Mail (U.S.) | Created at 2024-10-29 22:46:54 | Updated at 2024-11-05 21:17:53
6 days ago
A crime reporter has revealed why you should never answer text messages of numbers you don't know by writing that they have the wrong number - and there's an important reason why.
The crucial information was shared in recent months on TikTok by Lori Fullbright, a crime reporter for Tulsa, Oklahoma's News on 6.
Fullbright has worked as the station's crime reporter for 31 years, anchoring the 5, 6 and 10 p.m. news each night with Craig Day, and often takes to TikTok to share PSA's about ongoing crimes and scams.
This video was no different, as she explained to her viewers why they should never reply to unknown numbers with a message.
'I'm seeing a lot of these scam texts really get people, so one of the new things they're doing is, they will make it seem like they know you,' Fullbright began.
Crime reporter Lori Fullbright has revealed why you should never answer texts from unknown numbers apologizing that it's the 'wrong number'
Fullbright has worked as the station's crime reporter for 31 years, anchoring the 5, 6 and 10 p.m. news each night with Craig Day
She explained that some scammers have strayed from pretending to be companies like Amazon, UPS and various banks, and instead are posing as real people.
'They're saying like, "Hey, how are you today?" or "Hey Susie, I'm not gonna be able to make it Thursday at 2, let's reschedule,"' Fullbright explained.
'And, because we're nice and kind people what we do is then we text back and say, "Oh, you have the wrong number," which seems like a really sweet thing to do, but just don't do that,' she continued.
She explained that there are a few reasons for this - the first one being that at the end of the day, these people are just scammers.
'They are, first, trying to confirm that it's a real number, not a robot, which you've already now confirmed it's an actual person,' she said.
The crime reporter said that she often will see people receive a text back after they've said it's the wrong number, with these scammers introducing themselves or trying to get the innocent person to reply to them.
'It always leads to two things, they want to steal your information or they wanna steal your money,' Fullbright revealed.
Oftentimes, they will do this by telling you that they have a great way for you to invest in Crypto or Bitcoin, or sometimes, they'll even try to woo you with romance or flat-out ask for money.
She explained that some scammers have strayed from pretending to be companies like Amazon, UPS and various banks, and instead are posing as real people you may know
'They are, first, trying to confirm that it's a real number, not a robot, which you've already now confirmed it's an actual person,' Fullbright said
'In some way, they're gonna say they need your information, your passwords, your account information, or they need money,' the reporter explained to viewers.
'And a lot of times, it's a Crypto investment scam,' she added.
So, what does Fullbright recommend doing?
She advised that the next time you get one of these scam text messages, you need to 'resist the urge to be nice' and text them back.
'You can just delete it and move on with your life, I promise you it's a scammer, and you can also report scam on your phone, if you want to delete it and report it through your phone,' Fullbright shared.
The crime reporter also warned against clicking any link, QR code or attachment that comes with the text or email from someone that you don't know.
'It's hard because we are polite and nice, but in this case, stop being polite, don't answer these, don't respond to these, because it's scammers all the way,' she said.
'And once they get you, they will keep and keep working on you, but also now that they've confirmed your number is real, other scammers will also be hitting you as well and it is a pain in the hassle,' Fullbright concluded.
In the comments section of her video, many shared their own advice about what they do when they get these scam text messages.
'I mess with them by pretending to fall for their trick then last minute call them out. I like wasting their time then making them mad hahaha,' one person wrote.
Another agreed, 'I just end up insulting them a lot and they tell me how I’m being mean to them and to stop.'
'I love those texts! I have so much fun with them…I get to act as different people every time,' someone else admitted.
