Better Business Bureau warns of “too good to be true” deals coming in through texts

PITTSBURGH — Con artists are taking advantage of people looking for a good deal during a global pandemic — with scammers sending too good to be true discounts straight to your phone.

According to the Better Business Bureau, there have been numerous reports of scammers impersonating well-known companies with COVID-themed deals.

Caitlin Driscoll of the Better Business Bureau here in western Pennsylvania says the company’s scam tracker is seeing an increase in these COVID-related texts that are too good to be true.

Here’s some examples of actual scam texts reported — Verizon giving 950 dollars, Hulu giving a one-year free subscription, and AT&T with a gift for “coverage issues.” They almost always will have a link.

The link will often take you to a webpage that looks legitimate and asks for your login information, which they then steal. Experts warn many companies are using more text communication, so you have to be extra careful.

If you haven’t given a company permission to contact you through text messages, it probably is a scam.

Experts say these scams work. They warn you should always reach out to a company before clicking on a link. If it’s too good to be true, it usually is.

“Any scam that works, that is successful in getting money, they will continue to keep using but evolve with the trends that are happening,” explained Driscoll.

Is it allergies or is it COVID-19: what to look for