Scammers are contacting people through text messages that appear to come from Google in which the scammers tell their targeted victims that their Gmail account has been hacked and that they need to click on a link in the text message recover their account. Anyone falling for this scam would have found themselves directed to a phony, but legitimate appearing login portal where they would be prompted to provide their login credentials which would have enabled the scammers to take over their Gmail account.
The scammers perpetrating this scam have taken the scam to new heights by calling people following up on the text message telling them that there has been unauthorized use of their Gmail account and that they need to go to the phony login site to recover their account. Again, anyone doing so would turn over their account to a scammer.
This particular scam is technologically sophisticated with spoofed phone numbers and AI created voices used in the phone calls.
TIPS
As I often remind you, you can never be sure when you are contacted by phone, email or text message who is actually contacting you so you should never click on a link, download an attachment or provide personal information in response to any communication without first verifying the legitimacy of the communication. In the case of a text message or phone call that purports to tell you about a problem with your Gmail account, you should contact Google Gmail help center directly.
Also, if you haven’t done so, you should set up dual factor authentication for your Gmail account so that even if a scammer manages to trick you into providing your login credentials, the scammer won’t be able to access your account. Here is the link to where you can set up dual factor authentication for your Gmail account. https://support.google.com/mail/answer/185839?hl=en&co=GENIE.Platform%3DDesktop
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