How To Block Text Message Scams On Your Smartphones

Get ready if you thought robocalls were bothersome. The next annoyance to take over our phones is spam text messages advertising free gift cards, cheap credit card interest rates, debt relief programs, or other scams. However, the purpose remains the same: to take your money.

While phone companies are reluctant to respond to the deluge of robocalls, there are steps you can take to protect yourself. First, you have to understand how your cell phone repair number reached the telemarketers in the first place.

No matter what you do, do not respond or click anything in the text. Fighting back can be done in a variety of ways, and doing so benefits everyone. The more we oppose robo texts, the less likely it is that they will succeed.

How To Block Text Message Scams

1.  Stop Them Right Away

Many legal businesses provide you the option of stopping receiving their messages. However, you should always be wary of scammers that use the similar tactic to get you to reply STOP to their messages, which can assist them validate you and your phone number. A short Google search will usually reveal whether or not a textable number is legitimate. So you should try this and stay vigilant of such scammers.

2. Block Numbers

It’s simple to block numbers. However, exact steps may differ depending on your mobile device’s brand, model, and operating system. Also, you should keep in mind that the same operation may attempt to text you or reach you from a different number.

Open the text from the number you want to block on your iPhone and press on the sender’s number. Select the information I icon. Select Block this Caller and Block Contact from the Details screen by clicking on the phone number. On an Android, open your phone app and select Settings from the three-dot symbol in the upper right corner. Block numbers should be tapped. There will be several options in the list including unknown callers, recent calls, or from your contact list. You can either choose or manually enter a number you wish to block.

3. Be a Tattletale

In the fight against robo texts and spam messages, reporting a robots txt or spam message to your cellular provider is an excellent first step. Free of charge, copy and forward the original text to 7726 (SPAM). If you have a Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint, or Bell phone, you can easily use this method and get rid of the number.

4. File An Official Complaint

Sending unsolicited commercial email messages to wireless devices without your consent is prohibited, according to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). This rule covers text messages sent to your cell phone, as well as sending unsolicited texts through an auto-dialer. Transactional or relationship messages, as well as non-commercial messages such as political messaging, are the sole exceptions to this law. However, this is a very good option to get rid of unwanted calls or messages as filing an official complaint is always effective.

5. Use Your Phone’s Secret Setting

This setting isn’t exactly a secret. It’s so obscure you probably never thought of it. You can help eliminate spam messages and robo texts by filtering out spam on your mobile device. Filtering out spam on an iPhone is simple. Go to Settings and tap on Messages. Scroll down to Filter Unknown Senders and toggle the setting on. If you are an Android user, open your phone app and tap on the three-dot icon and choose Settings. Under Settings, enable Caller ID & Spam.

6. Get Some Extra Help

There are third party apps as well that can help you go against the spammers. There are two popular apps Nomorombo and RoboKiller which are available for both iOS and Android. Each of the apps require a subscription but once you have subscribed, they will be really efficient blocking these suspects.

Conclusion

Explained above are some of the effective ways to block text messages and spams.

You can follow these simple steps, if you are an Android or iPhone user and you can simply get rid of these scammers.