# Text scam - from post office? Yes or No? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 17, 2023, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/text-scam-from-post-office-yes-or-no/991705 "2023-10-17T14:12:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![glowacks](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/glowacks/32/5548_2.png) [@glowacks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/glowacks)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2023, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/text-scam-from-post-office-yes-or-no/991705/41 "2023-10-18T02:47:15Z")
> [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](#): > > He gave them information and only stopped responding when he was told he needed to pay 0.030 cents for a postage shortage. How does one go about managing to pay 3% of one cent? ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2023, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/text-scam-from-post-office-yes-or-no/991705/42 "2023-10-18T03:52:52Z")
> [@Monty](#): > > Hey, why does the Postal Inspector Service get a gov domain but the Postal Service itself only gets a com domain? The Postal Service is technically a corporation. > **[Federal Government Corporations: An Overview](https://www.everycrsreport.com/reports/RL30365.html)** > > To assist Congress in its oversight activities, this report provides an overview of the government corporation as an administrative... ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2023, 4:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/text-scam-from-post-office-yes-or-no/991705/43 "2023-10-18T04:09:39Z")
> [@Skywatcher](#): > > The Postal Service is technically a corporation. - Don’t let the SovCits know. They’ll be all over it. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2023, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/text-scam-from-post-office-yes-or-no/991705/44 "2023-10-18T04:11:25Z")
> [@Skywatcher](#): > > The Postal Service is technically a corporation. I know, but their cops are theirs so shouldn’t they be part of the corporation and thus have a com domain? > [@running\_coach](#): > > Don’t let the SovCits know. They’ll be all over it. 🤣 😂 😂 🤣 😂 🤣 ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2023, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/text-scam-from-post-office-yes-or-no/991705/45 "2023-10-18T04:16:35Z")
> [@Monty](#): > > I know, but their cops are theirs so shouldn’t they be part of the corporation and thus have a com domain? Ah. [Their cops are part of the Justice Department.](https://www.ojp.gov/ncjrs/virtual-library/abstracts/annual-report-investigations-united-states-postal-inspection) ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2023, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/text-scam-from-post-office-yes-or-no/991705/46 "2023-10-18T04:26:08Z")
Now, that’s quite interesting. Thanks! ---
**Author:** ![not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/not_what_you_d_expect/32/3246_2.png) [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/not_what_you_d_expect)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2023, 7:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/text-scam-from-post-office-yes-or-no/991705/47 "2023-10-18T07:08:25Z")
That was his clue that he might have been had. ---
**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2023, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/text-scam-from-post-office-yes-or-no/991705/48 "2023-10-18T15:43:34Z")
> [@Munch](#): > > I get online security trainings at work every quarter about smishing attacks. It’s a mash up of “SMS” and “phishing”. Yup. Phishing is via email, smishing is via text (SMS), & vishing is the voice, or phone call variant. ---
**Author:** ![chappachula](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d2c977/32.png) [@chappachula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chappachula)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2023, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/text-scam-from-post-office-yes-or-no/991705/49 "2023-10-18T15:47:00Z")
one more aspect that proves it’s a scam: the email offers no identifying info about the package. It only says “the package has arrived”. There is no tracking number, no other details. If it was real, it should give you some more info ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2023, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/text-scam-from-post-office-yes-or-no/991705/50 "2023-10-18T16:05:36Z")
I just got one of these. A variation of the word “China” was in the URL. My package should be getting here any minute. Fingers crossed. ---
**Author:** ![phs3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8491ac/32.png) [@phs3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phs3)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2023, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/text-scam-from-post-office-yes-or-no/991705/51 "2023-10-18T18:03:27Z")
“ **The** USPS package…”? No. that’s odd. Same with “ **the** warehouse”. Plus “warehouse”? USPS has Post Offices, not warehouses (I mean, they probably have warehouses, too, but those aren’t customer-facing). Similary, “address information” is just…off. Actually, so is “USPS package”. I would believe: “Message from the U.S. Postal Service: A package cannot be delivered due to an incomplete address.” ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2023, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/text-scam-from-post-office-yes-or-no/991705/52 "2023-10-18T19:50:15Z")
Legitimate services these days will almost never send text messages with links to click in them. I kmow Revenue Canada has this policy, as does my bank. If you get a text message from a bank, a store, a government agency or others with a clickable link in them and you think it might be real, just go to the organization’s web page, find a contact link there, and use it. Never click on a link from an unsolicited text message, period. There’s a Fed Ex phishing scam going around now. I’ve gotten several ‘missed package’ notices, and my wife has as well. All fake. ---
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2023, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/text-scam-from-post-office-yes-or-no/991705/53 "2023-10-18T23:50:57Z")
> [@phs3](#): > > “ **The** USPS package…”? No. that’s odd. Same with “ **the** warehouse”. Plus “warehouse”? USPS has Post Offices, not warehouses (I mean, they probably have warehouses, too, but those aren’t customer-facing). Similary, “address information” is just…off. Actually, so is “USPS package”. Not to beat this to death, but most of that is not the part that was highlighted as “odd phrasing.” The “the” at the beginning struck me as odd too, most of the rest of it wouldn’t have caught my attention (except that I automatically disbelieve pretty much any unexpected message of this sort). Also the fact that the message was sent twice, a week apart, each time with a deadline of 12 hours. ---
**Author:** ![WildaBeast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wildabeast/32/6_2.png) [@WildaBeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildaBeast)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2023, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/text-scam-from-post-office-yes-or-no/991705/54 "2023-10-18T23:54:58Z")
> [@Monty](#): > > Hey, why does the Postal Inspector Service get a gov domain but the Postal Service itself only gets a com domain? Well, [usps.gov](http://usps.gov) does work, although it just redirects to [usps.com](http://usps.com). ---
**Author:** ![Wolf333](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolf333/32/3460_2.png) [@Wolf333](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wolf333)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2023, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/text-scam-from-post-office-yes-or-no/991705/55 "2023-10-23T16:20:56Z")
Actually, quite a few services still use SMS with links. Lincare Duo Security Kettering Honda Are just the ones I’ve used recently. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/text-scam-from-post-office-yes-or-no/991705.md?page=2)