Fake USPS / Customs Text Script
A text impersonating a postal service or customs agency claims your package is held due to an unpaid customs charge or incomplete address, with a link to resolve it. The scammer wants your card number, expiry date, and CVV entered on a fake payment page, along with enough personal details to enable further fraud, and the small fee amount is designed to feel like a routine, low-stakes payment. It relies on the plausibility of an actual delivery in progress combined with a tiny dollar amount that discourages careful scrutiny. The most important step is to check any real delivery directly through the courier's official app or website rather than the link in the text.
Last reviewed: 1 June 2026
Sanitized example messages
Illustrative, sanitized examples. Personal details are replaced with placeholders such as [phone number] and [fake link].
USPS: Your package [tracking number] requires a customs payment of [amount]. Complete by [date]: [fake link]
US Customs: Item held. Pay [amount] duty or your parcel will be returned. Verify now: [fake link]
Your shipment is delayed. Confirm your address and pay [amount] clearance fee: [fake link]
USPS Alert: delivery failed. Reschedule and pay [amount] redelivery: [fake link]
What the scammer wants
To make you enter card and address details on a fake page that harvests them for fraud, and to collect a small fee that adds up at scale.
Red flags in the message
- Unexpected text about a parcel you don't recognise ordering
- Small customs or redelivery fee with a tight deadline
- Link to a domain that is not the official postal service website
- Page asks for full card details to pay a minor fee
- No option to pay through the official carrier's app or website
- Tracking number that returns no results on the real carrier's site
A safe response
Do not click. Look up any real delivery using your order confirmation and the carrier's official website. Genuine customs fees are presented formally and never via unsolicited text links.
What not to send
- Card or bank details
- Personal information
- Any fee payment via the link
What to do if you already replied
- If you entered card details, contact your bank immediately to cancel the card
- Change passwords if you created an account on the fake page
- Monitor your accounts for unauthorised transactions
- Report the text to your national cybercrime reporting body
Evidence to preserve
- Screenshot the full message or call details
- Note the sender number, email, or profile
- Save any links (without clicking) and payment details
- Record dates and times
Frequently asked questions
I am actually expecting a package right now — doesn't that make this text more likely to be real?
Not necessarily; these texts are sent in bulk to huge numbers of people specifically because a good portion will coincidentally have a package in transit, which is what makes the scam effective. Always verify independently through the postal service's own tracking page.
I entered my card details on the link — what should I do?
Contact your bank or card issuer immediately to block or reissue the card and monitor your statement closely for unfamiliar charges over the coming weeks. Report the transaction as fraud if you notice any unauthorised activity.
How do I check if a customs fee is genuinely owed on a package?
Log into your account on the postal service's or customs agency's official website directly and check using your own tracking number. Genuine customs fees are also usually handled at delivery or through official correspondence, not a random text link.
Should I block and report the number this came from?
Yes — use your phone's built-in 'report junk' or spam-reporting feature, which helps carriers filter similar messages, and then delete the text. Don't reply to the number, even to say stop.