Delivery Scams: Fake 'Missed Package' Messages Explained

Your Phone Buzzes About a Package

You are parked at the grocery store, or waiting out a red light, and your phone pings: "We tried to deliver your package, but missed you. Reschedule here." Maybe you are expecting a delivery. Maybe you are not. That split second of doubt — "did I order something?" — is exactly what the message was built to create.

These texts pose as USPS, FedEx, UPS, or DHL, and they arrive by the thousands every day. Most are phishing attempts: fake messages designed to steal your money or your personal information. This article walks through what these messages really are, why they have exploded in recent years, how to spot one in seconds, and what to do when one lands on your phone.

What a Fake "Missed Package" Message Looks Like

The scripts barely change from one message to the next. You may already recognize some of them:

"We missed you — reschedule your delivery before it returns to sender."
"Your package is on hold. Update your shipping address to continue."
"Your order is stuck in customs. Pay the tariff to release it."
"Unpaid postage is blocking your delivery. Settle the fee now."
"Confirm your delivery preferences by clicking this link."

Every version shares the same skeleton: a problem with a package, an urgent deadline, and a link. The link is the whole point. Nothing else in the message matters.

These messages have their own name: smishing, a blend of SMS and phishing. It is phishing delivered by text, and it often dresses up as a government agency, a bank, or a delivery company to look believable, according to the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.

Why These Scams Are Everywhere Right Now

The numbers explain the popularity. Americans reported losing $470 million to scams that began with a text message in 2024 — more than five times the losses reported in 2020, according to the Federal Trade Commission. Because most fraud is never reported, the true total is certainly larger.

Fake package delivery messages were the most commonly reported text scam of 2024, the FTC found. Add in the related scripts — fake tolls, fake bank alerts, fake job offers — and the FTC estimates the top five text scams accounted for about half of all text fraud reported last year.

Why does the trick work? Because nearly everyone is waiting on something. Between online orders, holiday gifts, and deliveries for the whole household, a package text feels plausible. And scammers treat this as a business: some criminal operations sell ready-made scam kits to anyone willing to pay a monthly fee, as The Atlantic has reported.

How the Scam Actually Works

Strip away the costume and the mechanics are simple. The text carries a link. Click it, and you land on a look-alike website built to copy the real carrier. A message there tells you to "fix" your address, pay a fee, or confirm your card details. Everything you type — name, address, credit card number — goes straight to the scammer, the FTC warns.

Some versions never ask for money at all. They want passwords, account numbers, or your Social Security number, which scammers can use to break into your accounts or sell to other criminals, according to the FTC.

There is a phone-based variation too. A fake "missed delivery" notice may include a call-back number that looks ordinary but is actually international. Calling it can trigger high connection fees and costly per-minute charges, the Federal Communications Commission warns.

Why Drivers Should Pay Attention

This site is about driving, so here is the connection: these texts reach you on the road, and the same playbook targets drivers directly.

Scammers impersonate toll agencies and departments of motor vehicles with fake "final notice" texts about unpaid tolls or a suspended license, as New York's DMV has warned. Fake toll texts have grown into a nationwide problem, with criminal groups running them at scale, according to The Atlantic. Delivery scams are close cousins of these car-related cons.

Drivers get hit on the selling side too. A "buyer" texts about your listing and pushes you to buy a vehicle history report from a look-alike website; the FTC has warned about these vehicle history report scams for years. Cars.com notes that scammers in these deals often make first contact by text or email. And fake sites copy the look of trusted brands like Kelley Blue Book so closely that the company's own warning is simple: check the web address itself, not the logo.

One rule of thumb for every driver: if a message about a package, a toll, or your car arrives while you are driving, do not open it at speed. Pull over somewhere safe first. No delivery is worth a distracted-driving moment.

Red Flags at a Glance

You do not need to be a tech expert to catch these messages. Check the warning signs in the table below before you tap anything.

Warning sign	What it usually means
Urgency — "act now," "final notice"	Pressure designed to make you click before you think
A link you did not ask for	The trap. Real tracking alerts come from the carrier's own app or short code
A request for money or card details	A scam. If you did not sign up for tracking alerts on that package, USPS did not text you
A number to call back	Could be international — and expensive, per the FCC
A message about a package you are not expecting	No order, no problem. Delete it
Sloppy spelling or a strange web address	Imitation sites are often poorly written, and the real web address is what matters, per Kelley Blue Book

Common Mistakes Smart People Make

Even careful people get tripped up by a well-timed text. Avoid these six:

Clicking "just to look." The click is the whole scam; nothing good happens after it.
Replying at all, even "STOP" or "wrong number." The Postal Inspection Service's advice is simply not to reply — a response tells whoever is sending that your number is live.
Calling the number in the message to "straighten it out." That number can be international, and the call can cost you, per the FCC.
Typing card details into a page you reached from a text. Legitimate carriers do not collect payments through links in messages.
Checking the message while driving. Pull over; the text will still be there in two minutes.
Keeping the scam to yourself. Forwarding the message to 7726 and reporting it to the FTC helps carriers and agencies flag the sender for everyone else.

What to Do When a Suspicious Text Arrives

Run through this short list the next time a delivery text looks off:

Do not click the link, reply, or call any number in the message.
Check your real shipments on the carrier's official app or website — typed in yourself, not opened from the text.
Forward the text to 7726. That short code routes the message to your wireless provider and helps report the sender's number, per the Postal Inspection Service.
Tell the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
If the message pretends to be USPS, email spam@uspis.gov with a screenshot, the sender's number, and the date.
If you lost money or shared sensitive information, file a complaint with the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center at ic3.gov.
Block the number and delete the message.

You Already Clicked. Now What?

Mistakes happen. Act quickly, and the damage can usually be contained.

Change the password on any account you signed into, and on any other account that uses the same password.
If you entered a card number or bank details, contact your bank or card issuer today.
Report what happened at ReportFraud.ftc.gov, and follow the recovery steps on the FTC's identity-theft site, IdentityTheft.gov, if you shared sensitive information.
Keep the message and any screenshots. Agencies ask for the sender's number and the date when they investigate.

Your Delivery-Scam Checklist

Keep this list handy for the next time your phone pings about a package:

No order in the works? No click. Real alerts follow a package you actually ordered.
Verify through the carrier's app or a website you typed yourself.
Never pay a "fee," "tariff," or "postage" from a text.
Never type card numbers, passwords, or your Social Security number into a page reached from a text.
Forward suspicious texts to 7726 and report them at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
If money moved or sensitive data went out, tell your bank and file an IC3 complaint.
Share this checklist with the online shoppers in your household — including the ones who insist they would never fall for it.

The Bottom Line

A fake "missed package" text only wins if someone clicks. Recognize the script, verify through official channels, and report what you see. That is how you keep the scam out of your wallet and your personal information out of the scammers' hands.

This article is for general information only and is not legal, financial, or automotive advice. For more, see our disclaimer.

Sources

[authority] https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/data-visualizations/data-spotlight/2025/04/top-text-scams-2024
[authority] https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2025/04/new-ftc-data-show-top-text-message-scams-2024-overall-losses-text-scams-hit-470-million
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[authority] https://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/how-recognize-avoid-phishing-scams
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[authority] https://faq.usps.com/s/article/Scams-Scheme-Alerts
[authority] https://www.fcc.gov/how-identify-and-avoid-package-delivery-scams
[authority] https://www.fcc.gov/avoid-temptation-smishing-scams
[authority] https://dmv.ny.gov/news/dmv-warns-new-yorkers-about-latest-barrage-of-scam-texts
[authority] https://www.identitytheft.gov
[reference] https://www.cars.com/articles/how-to-avoid-used-car-scams-1420680887789
[reference] https://mediaroom.kbb.com/press-releases?item=106002
[reference] https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/2025/11/smishing-scams/684905
[reference] https://abc7chicago.com/post/tollway-scam-alert-phishing-text-schemes-getting-drivers-pay-bogus-fees/15193999