New Text Scam Modus Operandi Targeting Globe Users

I received this text message a few weeks ago and I apologize for just getting around to sharing it today. I hope it helps someone from getting scammed by these unscrupulous people!

I also hope it helps Globe Telecom and the appropriate authorities in catching these thieves!

At first glance, it really looks like a legitimate Globe text based on the format and language of the text.

But upon closer inspection, note that it came from +639361525674. As far as I know, all legitimate texts I receive from Globe, Smart or Sun all come from their official numbers and accounts. For example, if the text is legitimately from Globe, instead of +63xxxxxxxxxx, it will show the word “GLOBE“. Other legitimate Globe messages might show the 4-digit numbers that Globe uses like 8888. But I’m sure it will never be +63xxxxxxxxxx. That’s a big, big giveaway that it is not an official message.

The wording of the message actually sounds very official and sophisticated. It’s very different in tone from the usual low-level scams littered with textspeak and obvious grammatical errors. It almost fooled me for a quick second!

Here’s the text of the message:

GLOBE UPDATE:

We’re sorry for having you charged P300 due to your line malfunction.

To retrieve this charge simply text 300<space>1212 send to 29361525057. (ex. 300 1212 to 29361525057)

Fortunately for me, I don’t have a postpaid Globe account, so there is no way for them to charge me with P300. And I’m not stupid enough to believe that I can get free P300 back even if I don’t have a postpaid Globe account. It’s just that my prepaid Globe number’s prefix is part of the original set, and people usually assume that it is for a postpaid number.

I am not particularly interested in any Share-A-Load type of offer, but I’ve used it a few times over the past several years moving expiring load to another Globe number, although why we have to go through workarounds like these just to save our “load” is just stupid, right, NTC? And this is why I recognized the format of the scam.

The objective of this scam is to trick unsuspecting people into sending P300 worth of Share-A-Load to 0936-1525057.

I hope that by sharing this, someone can be saved from being scammed.

Remember:

• If it’s too good to be true, it probably is.
• Always check the number the message came from to check if it is a legitimate telco number.
• Before doing anything, call the telco’s customer service to ask about it, ask more tech-savvy family members or friends for a second opinion, or Google it first.

UPDATE as of Nov. 24, 2014:

Globe’s Twitter customer service contacted me about this and made a report about this incident. Glad to see that they are responding seriously to incidents like these 🙂