USPS scam texts and emails

USPS package text or email: how to tell if it is fake

A text or email says USPS could not deliver your package, and asks you to click a link to update your address or pay a small redelivery fee. The link goes to a copy of the USPS site that collects your card number. The Postal Inspection Service says USPS does not text or email you unless you asked it to, and even then the message has no link.

Not sure about yours? Forward it to Penpal with "Is this real?" on top, and an answer comes back by email.

Forward it to hi+usps@askpenpal.com

or open in Gmail · Outlook. In your mail app, open the email, choose Forward, and send it to hi+usps@askpenpal.com.

Signs it is fake

• A delivery problem for a package you never asked USPS to send you updates about.
• A link to click, often a short or strange web address that is not usps.com.
• A small fee to pay for redelivery, a new address or customs.
• A warning that the package will be sent back or destroyed unless you act today.

Check it yourself

• Do not click the link. Type usps.com yourself and enter the tracking number from the shop or the sender, not one from the message.
• If you did not sign up for text or email updates on that package, USPS did not send it.
• Report it the way the Postal Inspection Service asks (uspis.gov/scams/smishing): forward a text to 7726, or email the details to spam@uspis.gov.

If you already called, paid or let them in

Call your bank or card company on the number printed on your card, and tell them. If they connected to your computer, stop using it for banking until it has been checked, and change your passwords from another device. If they ask you to send money back for a refund that was "too much", that is the scam continuing. Report it at reportfraud.ftc.gov (US).

You can also forward the email to Penpal and say what already happened. It answers the question you ask, so "I already called them, what now?" works.

Other emails you are not sure about

About Penpal

Penpal is an AI assistant you use by email. 3 free replies a day, no account. It is an AI and it can be wrong, so treat its answer as a second opinion, not a guarantee. Penpal never asks for a password, a code or card details in a reply. See the privacy and terms pages, or write to support@askpenpal.com to reach a person.