What it looks like
The message says a parcel couldn’t be delivered, is stuck at customs or needs an address update. It comes with a link and a deadline. The link opens a page that looks official and asks for a small payment, plus your full card details, name and address.
From: +44 7700 900123
Your parcel could not be delivered. Pay a £1.99 redelivery fee within 24 hours or it will be returned: https://parcel-redelivery.example/track
Why it’s fake: an unknown number, a tiny fee, a 24-hour deadline, and a link whose owner is parcel-redelivery.example, not a delivery company.
Made up for illustration. The sender, company and link don’t exist.
Warning signs
- You aren’t expecting a parcelScammers text thousands of numbers and hope some people are waiting for something. Check your real orders first.
- A small fee to release itA £1–3 “redelivery” or “customs” fee is the bait. The real goal is your card details, which are then used for much bigger payments.
- The link isn’t the company’s real siteRead the web address from the right, up to the first single slash. If the name there isn’t the delivery company’s own, it’s fake, however official the page looks.
- A tight deadline“Within 24 hours” or “returned to sender” is there to stop you thinking. A real parcel doesn’t vanish in a day.
- An odd senderA random mobile number, a long email-style address, or no name and no tracking number you recognise.
What to do now
- Don’t tap the link and don’t reply, not even with “STOP”.
- Check your orders in the shop’s app or on the delivery company’s site. Type the address yourself.
- If you really do owe a fee, you’ll see it there, not only in a text.
- Block the number and delete the message.
If you already clicked or paid
- If you only opened the page, close it and don’t enter anything. Looking is usually harmless.
- If you typed in card details, call your bank now. Ask them to block the card and stop any payments.
- If you approved something in your banking app, tell the bank that too, and check your recent transactions.
- Expect a follow-up call from “the bank” offering help. Hang up and call the number on your card.
How to report it
Forward the text to your mobile provider’s spam reporting service (in the UK, forward it to 7726) and report it to your local police or national fraud reporting service. In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, that’s Report Fraud (reportfraud.police.uk). In Scotland, call Police Scotland on 101. Reports help others get warned.