“And this will be where your card details are harvested, or possibly you’re signed up for some high-cost recurring ‘subscription’.”
NZ Post has been asked for comment.
Experts say to be suspicious of any text that comes from an overseas number, or any text that comes from a regular NZ cellphone number. Service providers usually send messages from a service that uses a 4-digit short-code. Reeve told the Herald the scam text came from a regular cell number.
Any request to click on a link is another red flag. Most legitimate service providers don’t ask you to click on a link in a text message, although there are exceptions. If in any doubt, phone the service provider, using a link you’ve sourced from its website.
NZ Post lists common scams on its website, and says:
NZ Post will never:
Ask for any of your personal information by email or text (including usernames, financial information including password, credit card details or account information)
Send you an email from a domain other than nzpost.co.nz
Send you a text message from a phone number outside of New Zealand
Use a messaging app like WhatsApp to communicate with our customers
Hints that it’s a scam:
The email address is wrong - it will always end in ‘@nzpost.co.nz’
The website link is wrong - it will always link to ‘nzpost.co.nz’ or ‘http://nzp.st/’ which is the short link we often use to link to our website.
The text message is sent from an overseas phone number
Chris Keall is an Auckland-based member of the Herald’s business team. He joined the Herald in 2018 and is technology editor and a senior business writer.
