In the US the tell isn’t the logo — it’s the money rail. Most scam texts here want you to “verify” a payment app, clear an IRS matter, pay a USPS “fee”, or call a fake bank number. Answer two quick questions and this checker tells you whether the message fits the pattern, gives you the official fact that gives it away, and shows you exactly how to report it. Free, anonymous, nothing to install.
The IRS, USPS, your bank and the payment apps never get you to pay, sign in, or move money by texting you a link. So stop asking who a text claims to be from and sort it by what it wants. If an unexpected message needs you to tap a link, sign in, or send, accept or “verify” money, treat it as a scam — go to the source yourself, and forward the text to 7726.
Scam-text advice usually tells you to hunt for typos and odd numbers. That’s useless now — the fakes are clean, and a spoofed sender ID drops the message straight into the same thread as your real alerts. What doesn’t lie is the ask. The IRS, USPS, the FTC and the payment networks have each said, publicly, what they will and won’t do — so you don’t have to judge whether a text “feels” right. You only have to notice what it wants, then go to the source yourself.
The reason it bites harder in the US is the rail. Money sent through Zelle, Venmo or Cash App behaves like cash — instant, and with no buyer protection for payments you authorized. That’s why the most common US scam text isn’t a bill at all but a “verify your account,” a “you sent yourself money, send it back,” or a fake “refund” — each one engineered around a transfer no one can reverse.
If you’ve already paid, the question becomes recovery. For what a US bank will and won’t refund and the fastest steps to claw money back, see how to get your money back after a scam, and be ready for the follow-on “recovery” con that targets people who’ve just lost money.
No. The IRS states that “a letter or notice is the first way the IRS will contact a taxpayer,” and that it “only sends text messages with the taxpayer’s permission.” It does not initiate contact by text, email or social media to request personal or financial information, and it never sends a link to claim a refund or settle a balance. A texted IRS refund, an “amount owing,” or a “verify your identity” link is always a scam. Check your account at IRS.gov yourself or call 1-800-829-1040, and report scam texts to phishing@irs.gov with the subject line “Text.”
Almost certainly not. The U.S. Postal Inspection Service says plainly: “USPS will not send customers text messages or e-mails without a customer first requesting the service with a tracking number, and it will NOT contain a link.” The small “redelivery” or “customs” fee is the hook to get your card number onto a lookalike page. If you're expecting a package, track it by typing USPS.com (or the carrier's real address) yourself — never through a link in a text. Report the message to spam@uspis.gov and forward it to 7726.
No — don't call a number from the text. No bank texts you a link to log in, and none puts the real fraud number inside the message; the “did you send $800? reply NO” text is bait to get you on the phone with a fake “fraud department.” The FTC's clearest rule cuts through every version: no one legitimate will ever tell you to move or transfer your money to “protect” it. Your bank's real fraud number is printed on the back of your card — call that, or open the official app.
Often not, which is exactly why scammers prefer these rails. The FTC warns that “sending money through a payment app is like sending cash — it's very hard to get it back,” and Zelle's own terms say it has no protection program for authorized payments and that money sent to an enrolled recipient “may not be canceled or revoked.” If you've sent money, call your bank or the app immediately and ask them to try to stop it — but act in minutes. And know that no bank will ever ask you to send money to “yourself” to reverse fraud; that instruction is the scam.
7726 (it spells SPAM on a keypad) is a free shortcode the major US carriers support — forwarding a scam text helps your provider identify and block the campaign. It doesn't open a case on its own. For that, report the scam at ReportFraud.ftc.gov, which feeds the FTC's and law enforcement's national database, and report money lost online to the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center at ic3.gov. The more reports a campaign gets, the faster it's shut down.
No — and it's careful not to pretend otherwise. The tool gives general guidance based on the published advice of the IRS, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the FTC and the payment networks; it doesn't see your actual message. When the answer is uncertain, it tells you to treat the text as a scam and verify with the organization directly through its official app or website. For a real human to look at a specific message, you can submit a free, confidential case review.
Every fact in this tool comes from these US authorities and networks. Click any to verify.