A text asking "u at home" from a random number is a scam designed to confirm your number is active. These are called "smishing" or "wrong number" scams. Do not reply; replying confirms your number is active and makes you more likely to be targeted for future scams. Instead, delete and report the message.
What to do
- Do not reply: Responding confirms your number is active and can lead to more scam texts.
- Delete the message: Remove the text to avoid accidentally interacting with it later.
- Report the number: Use your phone's built-in feature to report the message as junk or spam. On many phones, you can also forward the text to 7726 (SPAM) to report it to your carrier.
- Block the number: Prevent future messages from the same number by blocking it.
How the scam works
- Scammers send these texts to thousands of random numbers, hoping someone will reply.
- A reply from you confirms that your number is a working one, making it more valuable for future scams.
- The scammer might then pretend to be a person who has the wrong number and try to build a relationship with you over time to eventually ask for money or trick you into investing in a fake scheme.
- Other times, they may follow up with messages that impersonate well-known companies, such as delivery or banking services, to trick you into clicking on a malicious link.
For more tips, resources, and ways to protect your finances, visit our Fraud Center.