It’s becoming increasingly common for people to receive text messages that appear to originate from Nigeria. These messages often promise rewards, business opportunities, or requests for help from purported Nigerian officials. Understanding why you may be receiving these texts can help you avoid responding and potentially falling victim to scams.
What are Nigerian text scams?
Nigerian text scams are a form of advance fee fraud. The scammers will text you out of the blue and claim you’ve won a lottery or sweepstakes, or that a relative died and left you an inheritance. Of course, to collect your winnings, you first need to pay various “fees” and taxes. Or they may ask for personal information or money to help transfer funds out of Nigeria.
These are all lies intended to steal your money. Legitimate lotteries don’t require you to pay to collect winnings. And real Nigerian officials would never text random foreigners asking for help transferring money. The texts appear to come from Nigeria because the scammers often use “spoofed” numbers that mimic Nigerian country codes.
Why are people receiving these text scams?
There are a few reasons you may be targeted:
– Your phone number is on a “sucker list” purchased by scammers. This is a list of numbers belonging to people who have fallen for scams before.
– Your number was selected randomly. The scammers send out millions of texts to random numbers, knowing that a small percentage of people will take the bait.
– You responded to a previous scam attempt. This verified to the scammers that your number is active.
– You have a connection to Nigeria. For example, if you do business in Nigeria or have donated to Nigerian charities, this information may have ended up in the wrong hands.
– You have a public profile or have posted your contact info online somewhere that scammers accessed.
What’s the goal of the scammers?
The main goal is simply to steal your money. Nigerian text scams can seem obvious to many of us. But the scammers only need a tiny fraction of recipients to believe them and send money in order to profit.
Even if you don’t directly send them money, they may try to use your responses to collect personal information for identity theft. Or get you to click suspicious links to download malware onto your device.
Some key goals and tactics include:
– Quickly building trust and rapport through overly familiar greetings.
– Appealing to your sense of greed with promises of lavish prizes and rewards.
– Tugging on your heartstrings with stories of people in need.
– Urging you to act quickly so you don’t miss out.
– Asking you to keep the arrangement secret.
Why do the texts come from Nigeria?
Most of these scam texts do not actually originate from Nigeria itself. The scammers use deception to make it appear that way. Here are some reasons Nigeria is associated with these text and email scams:
Nigeria has a reputation for corruption and scams
Nigeria unfortunately has developed a worldwide reputation for various types of scams and corruption over the years. The Nigerian prince email scam has been around since the 1990s. Though scammers come from many nations, the Nigerian stereotype persists. Using the Nigeria angle often makes these texts appear more believable.
Many scammers are based in Nigeria
While the texts themselves are not necessarily sent from Nigeria, a large number of scammers do operate out of the country. High unemployment and poverty motivate Nigerian youth to become involved in cybercrime. It’s a fast way to try to get rich in a poor economy.
Presence of criminal networks
Highly organized cybercriminal networks exist in Nigeria that engage in various types of fraud. These networks train scammers, provide equipment, and even manage operations. So Nigeria has become a global hub for internet scams, helping fuel the Nigerian scammer image.
It’s hard for authorities to crack down
Nigerian law enforcement faces challenges putting an end to scams based in the country. Lack of resources, corruption, loose cybercrime laws, and jurisdiction issues across borders allow these criminal networks to continue operating. Efforts are underway to strengthen cybersecurity laws and enforcement.
Phone numbers are easy to spoof
Even when scammers are not physically located in Nigeria, it’s easy to make texts and calls appear to originate from the country. Using VoIP and spoofing technology, the scammers simply generate fake Nigerian numbers. This adds credibility to their scam attempts.
Common tactics used in Nigerian text scams
The scammers use a variety of tricks and psychological tactics to make their text scams seem believable. Here are some of the most common techniques:
1. Appealing to your generosity
Many texts pretend to be from someone in need, like a refugee, orphan, or sick person seeking assistance for food, medical care, or other urgent needs. This plays upon your compassion.
2. Impersonating trusted entities
Scammers often pretend to be from banks, government agencies, law firms, or other entities you would trust. This lends them seeming authority and legitimacy.
3. Threatening consequences
In some texts, scammers threaten you with consequences like lawsuits, arrest, deportation, or fines if you don’t pay taxes/fees or provide requested information. This scares some recipients into compliance.
4. Offering prizes and winnings
One of the most common tactics is claiming you won money in a lottery or random draw. To build excitement and credibility, they provide real names of actual sweepstakes/contests.
5. Seeking sensitive information
Under the guise of confirming your identity or facilitating payments, scammers try to get personally identifying info like account numbers, SSNs, photos, and copies of ID documents and passports.
6. Using official-looking documents
To look legitimate, scammers often send official-looking forms, contracts, receipts, and letters with government agency names, logos, and signatures. But it’s all fabricated.
7. Requesting upfront payment
A key sign of a scam is any request for payment upfront before you can receive winnings, make money, or get a gift. This is how they take your money before disappearing. Legitimate contests/sweepstakes don’t require you to pay fees.
8. Urging secrecy
Scammers often claim the arrangement needs to be kept confidential for security reasons or to avoid taxes. This prevents you from seeking advice from family and friends who may identify the scam.
Examples of common Nigerian text scam formats
Nigerian text scams come in many forms but often follow some common templates. Here are a few examples:
You’ve won a lottery/prize draw!
“Congrats! You just won £850,000 GBP in the UK World Lottery promotional draw. Contact Mr. Mark Smith at +234 123 456 789 to facilitate your prize money transfer.”
An inheritance from a distant relative:
“Greetings, I am Barrister James Ibori, attorney of late billionaire industrialist Chief Olusegun Obasanjo who named you beneficiary in his will. Contact me at +234 987 654 321 to facilitate your inheritance money transfer of £4.5 million GBP.”
A government agency needs your personal info:
“HM Revenue & Customs needs your National Insurance number, bank details, and a copy of your passport to process your tax refund and outstanding payments. Failure to provide by today will make you liable for penalties.”
A business proposal:
“Compliments! I am Alhaji Sanni Abacha, son of late former head of state Gen. Sani Abacha. I have confidential oil block allocation documents I need assistance to transfer out of Nigeria. You will earn 40% commission for your help. Respond today!”
A family member is traveling and needs money:
“Dear cousin, I am stranded in Nigeria without money or my passport. Please can you wire $1,500 immediately via Western Union so I can pay my hotel and get a flight home to the UK? I will repay you as soon as I am back. Regards, Harry.”
How to avoid falling victim to Nigerian text scams
Here are some tips to help protect yourself from these criminal text messages:
Be skeptical of random promising texts
If you get a text making lavish offers out of the blue, be very suspicious. Legitimate contests and businesses don’t operate this way.
Watch for urgent pleas for money
Any message begging for immediate money transfers is a huge red flag. Real emergencies are rare – most pleas are scams.
Don’t call phone numbers in the texts
This can verify your number is active, leading to more spam texts. It can also rack up expensive international calling charges.
Never send sensitive personal information
No matter how convincing the story, never provide banking details, copies of documents, or account numbers. Scammers can steal your identity.
Don’t pay any upfront fees
If you must pay fees, taxes, bribes, etc. to claim winnings or payments, it’s certainly a scam. This is how they take your money.
Search online for similar scam reports
Search details from the text like website names, phone numbers, and language used to see if other people reported it as a scam.
Ask people you trust for a second opinion
Discuss any texts that seem strange with friends, family members, coworkers, or professionals to get another perspective. They may quickly identify it as a scam.
Report the texts
Notify your phone provider and local law enforcement about any scam texts you receive. You can also file complaints with the FTC and FCC to help authorities track down scammers.
How to block unwanted texts from Nigeria
To stop receiving scam texts from Nigeria, you can take some prevention measures:
Don’t respond to any texts from unknown numbers
Replying lets scammers know your number is active. This flags your number for more scam attempts.
Block all international calls and texts
Contact your mobile carrier to block calls and texts originating from Nigeria and other countries. This prevents most scam attempts from reaching you.
Install a robust call/text blocking app
Apps like RoboKiller or Hiya can automatically block known scam numbers, spam texts, and calls from Nigeria and other risky regions.
Add numbers to your phone’s block list
When you do receive a scam text from Nigeria, add the number to your smartphone’s block list to prevent further texts.
Avoid posting your phone number publicly online
Keep phone numbers off social media profiles and public directories. Scammers search these sources for numbers.
Register for the Do Not Call list
Though scammers will still call, signing up for the National Do Not Call Registry can help reduce unsolicited calls from actual companies.
Ask major carriers to block incoming international calls/texts
Major mobile providers like AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon allow customers to request blocking all calls and texts that originate internationally upon request. This could prevent most Nigerian scam texts. However, scammers do sometimes mask local numbers too.
Reporting Nigerian scam texts
If you receive a scam text claiming to be from Nigeria, you can report it to help authorities locate and stop scammers:
Notify your phone carrier
Your mobile provider can block numbers, trace where texts originated, and work with global partners to shut down accounts used for scams.
File a complaint with the FCC
You can report scam texts and calls to the Federal Communications Commission online or by phone. The FCC partners with law enforcement to prosecute scammers and robocallers.
Report it to the FTC
The FTC is the top government agency for consumer protection in the U.S. Their online complaint form helps them detect patterns and trends in scams.
Submit a scam report to the FBI
The FBI has an Internet Crime Complaint Center where you can provide details on Nigerian text scams and other cybercrimes for federal criminal investigations.
Contact local law enforcement
Your local police department may also want to be informed about scam activity targeting people in your area. They can potentially trace local numbers.
Inform your state attorney general’s office
Each state has consumer protection divisions that track fraudulent business practices. Reporting the texts helps them build cases against scammers.
Conclusion
Nigerian text scams can seem innocent and convincing at first glance. But no matter how much money scammers promise you, responding puts you at risk of losing money or having your identity stolen. Protect yourself by never replying, providing personal information, or sending any payment. Report scam texts to help bring an end to this criminal activity exploiting people across the globe. Following common sense security measures and awareness of their typical tactics can help you avoid becoming the victim of a Nigerian text scam.