How to Spot a Fake Package Delivery Text or Email Before You Click

By Morgan · Reviewed by CaseyLast updated July 20, 2026

A fake delivery text or email usually claims there’s a problem with a package — an undeliverable address, a customs fee, or a missed delivery — and pressures you to click a link right away to fix it. The safest response is to not click the link at all, and instead check your order status directly on the retailer’s real website or official app. The signs below help you spot these messages before you ever tap anything.

Signs a delivery message is fake

• It creates urgency: “Your package will be returned” or “Action required within 24 hours”
• It asks you to click a link to “reschedule,” “pay a fee,” or “confirm your address”
• The sender’s number or email looks unusual, or the company name is spelled slightly wrong
• You don’t recall ordering anything recently, or the message doesn’t mention a specific retailer you actually used
• The link, when you look closely (without clicking), goes to a web address that doesn’t match the real company’s website

Real delivery companies (USPS, UPS, FedEx, Amazon, and others) generally don’t ask you to pay a fee by text to release a package, and legitimate tracking notifications don’t usually pressure you with countdown-style urgency.

Step 1: Don’t click the link

Even if it looks legitimate, the safest first move is to leave the link untouched. Clicking can take you to a fake website designed to steal personal or payment information, or in some cases install unwanted software.

Step 2: Check your actual order status directly

1. Open the retailer’s official app, or type their website address directly into your browser rather than clicking any link in the message.
2. Sign in and check your Orders or Order History section.
3. If there’s a genuine delivery issue, it will typically show up there — you don’t need the text or email at all to find out.

Step 3: Look up the tracking number separately, if you have one

1. If the message includes a tracking number, copy just the number (not the link).
2. Go directly to the shipping carrier’s official website (usps.com, ups.com, fedex.com) and paste the tracking number into their own tracking tool.
3. This confirms real delivery status without trusting the message’s link.

Step 4: Report and delete the message

For text messages:

1. On iPhone, touch and hold the message, tap More, then tap the report/flag icon, or forward it to 7726 (which spells “SPAM”).
2. On Android, tap and hold the message, then look for Report spam or Block.

For emails:

1. Look for a Report phishing or Report spam option in your email app’s menu (usually under the three-dot menu next to the message).
2. Most email providers use these reports to better filter future scam messages for everyone.

What to do if you already clicked the link

Don’t panic, but act promptly:

1. If you entered a password: change that password immediately, and change it elsewhere too if you reused it on other accounts.
2. If you entered payment card information: contact your card issuer right away to review recent charges and consider requesting a new card number.
3. If you’re not sure what you entered: it’s still worth contacting your bank or card company as a precaution.

How to reduce how many of these you get

• Turn on your phone’s built-in spam filtering for text messages (check Settings → Messages on iPhone, or your Messages app’s spam settings on Android).
• Only sign up for shipping notifications through the retailer’s official app rather than clicking links in unsolicited messages.
• Be cautious around high-shopping periods (holidays, big sale events), when scam delivery texts tend to spike alongside real ones.

Frequently asked questions