T-Mobile Rewards Scam Targeting Illinois Customers

If you are T-Mobile customer, there's a clever text phishing scam you need to be aware of... so you aren't one click away from falling victim like I did.

T-Mobile Customer Perks

My family has been US Cellular customers for several years now here in Illinois, and we have always been happy with our service. When the merger with T-Mobile was officially announced, we weren't too worried about service changes... and we're still not.

Two weeks ago, my family officially became T-Mobile customers. I was not present when my husband went to the US Cellular store to get everything switched over, and I was still completely clueless about any perks that come with being a T-Mobile customer. Everything has been going swimmingly so far, then my husband forwarded me this text on Friday, May 29. (The date is important to know).

My first thought after receiving the above text?

"Well, that's a nice welcome gift."

My second thought?

My husband must have sent me this to figure out what it's all about. So, that's what I did.

T-Mobile Text Scam

At first glance, the text looks legit. It has T-Mobile branding, no glaring spelling or grammar errors, but there are several red flags I was too blinded by "15,700 expiring points" to see.

1. The link to click on.

2. The sense of urgency by saying my points would expire soon.

3. The lack of correct company verbiage.

After clicking the link I now realize I should never have clicked, I saw some pretty impressive rewards that I was eligible for:

I can have any of those things for free?! What's the catch?

I was literally one click away from claiming a new Nintendo Switch when I stopped, because something felt off.

For starters, my husband never mentioned signing us up for a rewards program, so how did we accumulate so many points that are already expiring?

Also, the website address didn't appear to be a T-Mobile website at all.

That's when the red flags started waving.

After doing some research, I discovered it was a well-documented "smishing" scam (and I felt like a fool).

This scam is designed to steal account information, passwords, and credit card information, and the truth is T-Mobile does not have a points-based reward program.

I found a post in the community section of T-Mobile's website that says:

Scammers often use fake “reward points” offers and urgency tactics to trick people into giving away personal or credit card information. A legitimate company would not handle rewards this way.

If anyone receives a similar text:
• Do not click links
• Do not provide payment or personal information
• Block and report the number as spam
• Verify offers directly through the official T-Mobile app or website

Please remember, if you receive a text message claiming you're sitting on 18,000 mystery T-Mobile rewards points, it is not your lucky day.

My kids were definitely disappointed they weren't getting a free Nintendo Switch, but at least my bank account and personal information survived the experience.

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Gallery Credit: Bethany Adams

Filed Under: Illinois News