Scam text checker for iPhone
Is this text a scam? Check it on your iPhone.
Paste a text into Veridicus Scan to see whether it looks like a scam, and why. With Premium, a Messages filter sends clear scams from unknown senders to Junk. Nothing you check leaves your iPhone.
Checking a text is free · Junk filter with Premium · iOS 17 or later
How to tell if a text is a scam.
Most scam texts follow one script: a company or agency you know, a problem that needs fixing today, and a link to fix it.
- A stranger who claims to be someone you know. The DMV, a toll road, USPS, your bank or Apple, texting from an unknown number, an email address or a long number.
- A deadline and a threat. Pay today or face a late fee, a suspended license, a locked account or a returned parcel.
- A link that is not the real website. Extra words such as
ncdmv-gov, swapped letters such asu5ps, a shortened link or a bare number. - A request for a code or a reply. No company needs the code it just sent you. "Reply Y to activate the link" makes a blocked link tappable.
- A friendly hello from no one. "Sorry, wrong number" or "Hi Mum, this is my new phone" is how longer romance, investment and family-emergency scams start.
When in doubt, don't use the link. Open the company's app, or type its web address yourself.
Scam texts going around in 2026.
US searches for "scam text" peaked in March 2026, when fake DMV and toll texts spread from state to state. The FTC's five most reported text scams, fake delivery problems, fake jobs, fake fraud alerts, unpaid tolls and "wrong number" texts, make up about half of all text-scam reports, and people reported losing $470 million to scam texts in 2024.
| Scam | What the text says | Check it instead |
|---|---|---|
| DMV and traffic tickets | "Final notice: unpaid traffic ticket. Pay today to avoid license suspension." | Your state DMV's own website |
| Unpaid tolls | "You have an unpaid toll of $6.99. Pay now to avoid a $50 late fee." | Your toll account's app or website |
| Parcel delivery | "USPS: your package could not be delivered. Update your address." | The carrier's app or tracking page |
| Fake fraud alerts | "Apple Pay, Amazon or your bank: a suspicious purchase. Tap or call to cancel it." | The number on your card, or the company's app |
| Codes and withdrawals | "A withdrawal was requested from your account" or "Send me the code I just sent you." | Your account in the official app |
| Jobs | "Remote job, $300 a day. Message us on WhatsApp to start." | The company's own careers page |
| Tax refunds and penalties | "IRS or HMRC: you are owed a refund of 326.40. Claim it today." | IRS.gov or GOV.UK, typed in yourself |
| Wrong number and "Hi Mum" | "Hi, is this Emma?" or "Hi Mum, I broke my phone, this is my new number." | Call the person on the number you already have |
Check a text in seconds.
- Copy the text in Messages, then open Veridicus Scan and tap Scam texts in the bottom bar.
- Tap Paste. The check runs straight away, with no button to press. You can also share selected text to the app.
- Read the result: Possible scam, Worth a closer look or No scam signs found, with the reasons and where the link really goes.
Checking a text is free. It works on any text you paste, including texts from people you know.
Send scam texts to Junk automatically.
With Premium, Veridicus Scan also works as a text message filter. iPhone passes it texts from unknown senders. Clear scams go to Junk; everything else stays where it was. Texts from your contacts never reach a filter.
| iPhone | Turn on the filter |
|---|---|
| iOS 26 and later | Messages › Filters › Manage Filtering › Text Message Filter › Veridicus Scan |
| iOS 18 | Settings › Apps › Messages › Unknown & Spam › SMS Filtering › Veridicus Scan |
| iOS 17 | Settings › Messages › Unknown & Spam › SMS Filtering › Veridicus Scan |
Junk is kept for clear scams: unpaid tolls and fines, delivery fees, fake account alerts, government refunds and penalties, prizes, job offers with a link, investment groups, fake renewal charges, and links or sender names that imitate a company. It also catches texts with hidden instructions for an AI assistant. Texts that need judgement, such as a wrong-number opener or a request for a code, stay in your inbox. Paste them into Scam texts to see the warning.
Checked on your iPhone, not uploaded.
The filter runs inside Messages with no network access. It doesn't store, log or send your texts, and there is no account to sign in to. Many online scam checkers upload what you paste to a server, and some keep it to train their AI.
Veridicus Scan mainly recognises scam texts written in English, with sender and brand checks for the US, UK, Canada, Australia and Ireland. A check is a risk assessment, not a guarantee.
Privacy and connectionsTapped the link or replied?
- Stop. Don't enter anything more on the page, and don't reply again.
- If you entered card details, call your bank on the number on your card and ask them to block it.
- If you entered a password or a code, change that password in the real app or website and turn on two-factor authentication.
- Report it: tap Report Junk in Messages, forward the text to 7726 (SPAM) in the US or UK, and in the US report it at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
- Delete the text.
Scam text questions.
How can I tell if a text is a scam?
Most scam texts come from a number or name you don't know, claim to be a company or agency, give you a deadline, and send you to a link that is not the company's own website. Requests for a code, card details or a reply are also warning signs. If in doubt, don't use the link: open the company's app or type its address yourself.
Is there an app that checks if a text is a scam?
Yes. Veridicus Scan for iPhone checks any text you paste and explains what looks like a scam and where its link really goes. The check is free and runs on your iPhone. With Premium it also works as a Messages filter that sends clear scams from unknown senders to Junk.
Does Veridicus Scan read all my messages?
No. Messages only passes texts from unknown senders to a filter, and only after you turn the filter on. Each text is checked on your iPhone. The filter has no network access and does not store or send your messages.
Why is a scam text still in my inbox?
The filter only moves clear scams, and iPhone only passes it texts from unknown senders. Texts from contacts and from people you have replied to stay in your inbox, and so do texts that need judgement, such as a wrong-number opener. Paste those into Scam texts to check them.
Should I reply STOP to a scam text?
No. Any reply tells the sender that your number is active. Report the text as junk, forward it to 7726 if you are in the US or UK, and delete it.
Does it work outside the US?
It recognises scam texts written in English, with sender and brand checks for the US, UK, Canada, Australia and Ireland. Texts in other languages may not be recognised.
Is the scam text checker free?
Checking a text is free. The Messages filter is part of Premium, which also includes unlimited scans and the AI agent connection.
Sources.
- FTC Data Spotlight: top text scams of 2024
- FBI IC3: smishing scam targeting toll road users
- North Carolina Department of Justice: beware of DMV text scams
- Connecticut DMV: text message scam warning
- FTC: how to recognize and report spam text messages
- Apple: unknown senders in Messages on iPhone
- Google Trends, "scam text", United States, past 12 months (October 2026)
Check the next text before you tap.
Paste it into Veridicus Scan and see the reasons in seconds.
Download on the App Store