The pending-parcel scam

The most widespread scenario, because it is almost always right.

This is the most frequent SMS fraud, and its strength rests on a simple statistic: at any given moment, a large share of recipients really is waiting for a parcel. The message therefore does not need to be convincing, only well timed. It announces a held parcel, asks for a few euros in fees, and links to a page imitating a well-known carrier.

How this scam works

The message mentions a stuck parcel, unpaid customs fees or an incomplete address, and offers a link to put things right. The landing page reproduces a carrier's visual identity and asks for a small payment — one or two euros — by card. The amount is not the point: it exists solely to obtain a working card number, which is then used for far larger debits, sometimes weeks later.

How to recognise it

You are not expecting a parcel, or you ordered from no merchant that would involve customs clearance.
The carrier named is not the one the merchant you ordered from actually uses.
There is no tracking number, or it matches nothing on the carrier's official site.
The fees are trivial: real customs clearance is never settled for one euro through a link in a text.

What to do if you received this message

1
Do not click the link
Merely opening the page can confirm that your number is live, which exposes you to further campaigns.
2
Check directly with the carrier
Open the carrier's official site by typing the address yourself and look up your tracking number. If it does not exist, the text is fraudulent.
3
Forward the message to 33700
Reporting is free. You will receive an automated request for the sender's number: send it back as is.
4
Delete the message and block the number
Blocking protects you immediately, independently of the report, which acts on the source.

What you must never do

•Never enter a card number on a page reached from a link received by SMS.
•Do not call the sender's number back: it may be premium-rated.
•Do not reply STOP to a fraudulent message: unlike a commercial SMS, it only confirms that your number is live.

Frequently asked questions

I paid the fees — what should I do?+

Contact your bank immediately to block the card, then report the fraud; cybermalveillance.gouv.fr sets out the steps according to the harm suffered.

Can a real carrier ask for fees by SMS?+

Customs fees genuinely exist on imports, but they are settled on the carrier's official site, never through a link sent by message.

Report to 33700 See all scams Glossary

Mon SMS Gratuit is not affiliated with any of the organisations named on these pages; they appear only because fraudsters impersonate them. Our service is also reserved for personal, one-off sending: it sends no campaigns and no commercial messages, and cannot be the source of a fraudulent SMS sent in our name or anyone else's.