HOUSTON \u2013 Thieves are getting smarter \u2014 and their latest tactic may look like a message from a company you trust.<\/p>\n
Fake \u201cproduct recall\u201d text messages are becoming more common, designed to create urgency so you act quickly without thinking twice.<\/p>\n
How the scheme works<\/p>\n
It often starts with a text claiming something you recently purchased has been recalled due to a serious safety issue.<\/p>\n
The message may appear legitimate \u2014 sometimes even referencing a real retailer or a recent purchase. But there\u2019s a catch.<\/p>\n
The link included in the message typically leads to a fake website built to steal your personal or financial information.<\/p>\n
Experts say thieves time these messages strategically \u2014 often during busy shopping seasons or even months after major purchases \u2014 to make them more believable.<\/p>\n
What you should do<\/p>\n
The most important step? Pause.<\/p>\n
Don\u2019t click links in unexpected or random text messages <\/p>\n
Go directly to the company\u2019s official website or app to verify the claim <\/p>\n
Red flags to watch for<\/p>\n
Urgent language pushing you to act immediately <\/p>\n
Requests for personal or financial information <\/p>\n
Links that don\u2019t match official company websites <\/p>\n
Real companies will not ask for sensitive information or payments through a text link.<\/p>\n
If you already clicked the link<\/p>\n
If you interacted with a suspicious message, act quickly:<\/p>\n
Run antivirus software to check for malware <\/p>\n
Contact your bank if you entered any financial information <\/p>\n
Change passwords for any accounts you may have accessed <\/p>\n
Leah Napoliello, VP of Investigations with the Better Business Bureau of Greater Houston warns that thieves may try multiple ways to compromise your information \u2014 from installing malware to collecting login credentials.<\/p>\n
Report the scheme<\/p>\n
If you receive one of these messages, report it to:<\/p>\n
Bottom line<\/p>\n
Don\u2019t trust unexpected texts \u2014 even if they look real.<\/p>\n
When it comes to recalls, always go straight to the source. Taking a moment to verify before clicking can help protect your money \u2014 and your identity.<\/p>\n
Copyright 2026 by KPRC Click2Houston – All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"HOUSTON \u2013 Thieves are getting smarter \u2014 and their latest tactic may look like a message from a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":275434,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[79006,101973,101972,56,58,57],"class_list":["post-275433","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-houston","tag-better-business-bureau","tag-consumer-alert","tag-fake-text-message-scheme","tag-houston","tag-houston-headlines","tag-houston-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/275433","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=275433"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/275433\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/275434"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=275433"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=275433"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=275433"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}