(NEXSTAR) – Scammers are sending unsuspecting people seemingly innocent photos with intentions that aren’t so innocent, the Better Business Bureau warns.
One such scam starts with a text out of the blue. The only thing the message contains is a photo of a disembodied hand holding up a wine bottle – no caption, no context.
But the scam has nothing to do with wine. The photo could be of anything – a person, a nature scene, it doesn’t matter. The whole point is to get you to respond, explains Melanie McGovern, direct of public relations and social media at the Better Business Bureau (BBB).
“It’s fishing to see if the number is a real person, and how far they can get you down the rabbit hole,” says McGovern.
One person who reported the wine bottle scam to the BBB said they replied to the mystery texter, and it initially launched a conversation about wine. But then the wine bottle texter started asking for the recipient’s name and age, and that set off alarm bells.
A similar scam was ubiquitous in 2022. People all over the country were receiving unsolicited photos of a red-headed woman. Those who responded often said something along the lines “I think you have the wrong number,” but that didn’t end the conversation. The person on the other side used it as a launching point to build rapport and keep the conversation going.
These photo texts are all a type of “wrong number scams,” the BBB explains.
“We’re a very polite society. If you get a text message for a wrong number, your first instinct is to say, ‘Hey, you have the wrong number,'” McGovern says.
But once you do respond, they know you’re there, and could continue bothering you. Sometimes they’ll send you a link to click, which could download malware to your device. They may also pester you for personal or identifying information.
The best thing to do if you get one of these messages, McGovern says, is to just ignore it. You can also delete it or mark it as spam.
If you do respond, and the conversation turns fishy, listen to your gut. McGovern reminds people not to click any links or give out any personal information, even if the unidentified texter is telling you you’ve won something.
Reporting to the scam to the Better Business Bureau’s scam tracker also helps them work with the FTC to crack down on bad actors.
