I recently ordered a gift for my Goddaughter from Greece. I’m pretty anxious to get it since it is for her communion which happens next month. Yesterday, I got a suspicious SMS with a link to a “ubotej. co” link telling me that my item had arrived at their international entry point and to click the link to pay taxes so that my package would not be delayed. My hackles immediately went off…why? Cause I’ve dealt with customs in Portugal (click here to learn what to do if you have a package stuck at Portuguese customs). I’ll tell you, it isn’t fun and they certainly don’t send you an SMS. My package was also coming from Greece which is part of the EU, so there should be no taxes. I figured it was a scam, so before clicking any weird links on my phone, I figured I’d google the company and find out.
PORTUGUESE SMS CUSTOMS SCAM
https://info.portaldasfinancas.gov.pt/pt/destaques/Paginas/Alerta_seguranca_2021_02_22.aspxI was right to be wary about this SMS. The Portuguese Tax Authority has issued a warning that it is, in fact, a phishing scam looking to steal personal information.
Above is the email I received…if you get something similar, but with some changes, let me know in the comments. You may be helping someone else.
My husband received one saying : Fomos instruidos a guardar seu item em nossos deposito internacional. Resolve aqui http/isozis com/ 11tC4NK.
Unfortunately he opened it, so is there something he can do to prevent info being stolen?
Hi Emily,
You should probably be ok if you didn’t enter any information onto the site. For the most part, opening and reading the phishing SMS text message won’t infect your phone. If you downloaded an attachment or entered any info, then I’d worry. For now, I would go to settings and make sure that number is blocked.
Same message from 935 291 257 that as been send to my husband and other relatives from different numbers
Fomos instruidos a guardar seu item em nosso deposito internacional. Resolva aqui
Scam
Yeah, it seems this is the latest sms scam here. I’ve seen it not only on Portuguese expat forums, but also in local Portugal forums.