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Tips to avoid election year phone scams
Nicholas Freshour
Oct. 21, 2024 8:32 am
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While many will receive legitimate calls and texts from political campaigns this year, sometimes it’s hard to distinguish between real and fake solicitations as criminals attempt to contact people with voter registration scams, fake polls or fraudulent donation requests.
UScellular wants to help you stay diligent to stop spam texts and prevent getting scammed.
First and foremost, if the message conveys urgency and asks you to do something immediately, consider that a red flag. You should never click on a text message link unless you are 100% certain who sent it.
If you suspect a message is a scam, you can report it with the free SpamResponse app that empowers customers to easily relay potential text message spam. When reported, UScellular can investigate fraudulent websites and get them shut down to create a safer and better customer experience.
UScellular offers these tips to help you prevent scams in an election year or anytime:
- Do not respond to unwanted texts from questionable sources.
- Don't click on links in texts from unknown numbers.
- Don't answer calls from unknown numbers. If you answer such a call, hang up immediately. If you miss a call from an unknown number, don’t call it back.
- You may not be able to tell right away if an incoming call is spoofed. Caller ID showing a "local" number does not necessarily mean the caller is local.
- Never give out personal information, such as account numbers, Social Security numbers, passwords or other identifying information, if you are suspicious.
Nicholas Freshour
UScellular Agent Development Manager
Marion
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