30 Of The Funniest Wrong Number Texts Ever (New Pics)

Although scrolling through texts from an unknown number is pretty fun, receiving one may be really dangerous. If you have never heard of smishing (or the ‘SMS phishing’), pull your seat closer. It’s a fraudulent practice of sending text messages purporting to be from reputable companies in order to induce individuals to reveal personal information, such as passwords or credit card numbers. It’s basically a cybersecurity attack carried out over mobile text messaging, so it’s far from innocent.

In order to find out more about what to do if you receive a text from an unknown number, we reached out to Daniel Markuson, a cybersecurity expert at NordVPN who shared some very useful insights and tips. First off, if you ever receive a text message from an unknown number, Daniel warns not to reply to it if you’re not sure if it’s legit. “Ignore it, even if it asks you to reply to prevent further messages. When you respond, you indicate to scammers that you have an active phone number. You will then likely receive a follow-up message.”

Another tip from Daniel is always to use common sense. “Do not click on any links. Do not transfer money or enter your personal data. Don’t download any apps from links in text messages,” he said. Sometimes, however, you may not be entirely sure if the message from an unknown number is safe or not. “When it is not possible to be 100% sure if the message is safe using common sense, I recommend just ignoring it,” Daniel said.

There are also some red flags to look for in a smishing text. Urgency is one. “Smishing messages will prompt you to act quickly. They want you to act before you have time to think or generate doubt about the message’s legitimacy.” Secondly, if it contains sensitive requests, the chances it’s a smishing message are really high. “Most legitimate companies take pains to clarify that they will never ask you for your password or credit card info in a message. However, hackers may send you to a false link to enter your personal or credit card data, transfer money, or log in to an account,” Daniel explained.