You can report scam texts in several places, and reporting to more than one raises the odds the sender gets shut down. The fastest options are forwarding the message to 7726 (your wireless carrier), filing a report at ReportFraud.ftc.gov, submitting a complaint through the FCC’s Consumer Complaint Center, and using the spam-report tool built into your phone’s messaging app. If the text impersonates a specific company or agency, report it there too. If you lost money, add the FBI.
First, Don’t Reply and Save a Screenshot
Do not respond to a suspicious text, not even with “stop” or “wrong number.” A reply confirms your number is active and usually brings more scam messages.1Federal Trade Commission. Why It’s Not Rude to Ignore “Hi, How Are You?” Text Messages From Strangers Don’t tap any link and don’t call any number in the message. Take a screenshot first so you have the sender’s number, the date and time, and the message text preserved as evidence, then move on to the reporting channels below.
Forward the Text to 7726
The quickest step is to forward the message to 7726, which spells SPAM on a keypad. That sends it to your wireless carrier so they can identify and block the sender.2Federal Trade Commission. How to Recognize and Report Spam Text Messages AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon all support the short code.3Federal Communications Commission. How to Avoid Package Delivery Scams
After you forward, the carrier may text back asking for the number the scam came from. Send it. When enough customers report the same number, the carrier can suspend the account behind it. Forwarding to 7726 doesn’t replace the other reports; do both.
Report to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov
File at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. The site walks you through a short set of prompts: what happened, the sender’s number, and the message text. Reports feed into Consumer Sentinel, a database that law enforcement agencies use to spot patterns and build cases.4Federal Trade Commission. ReportFraud.ftc.gov
The FTC won’t resolve your individual complaint. What it does is pool reports, and when many people describe the same number or the same script, investigators can act on the pattern.
File a Complaint With the FCC
The FCC accepts complaints about unwanted calls and texts at its Consumer Complaint Center. Choose “Phone” as the issue type and fill in the guided form describing the scam text.5Federal Communications Commission. FCC Complaints The FCC tracks these complaints to identify trends and support enforcement.6Federal Communications Commission. Filing an Informal Complaint The FTC covers consumer protection broadly; the FCC regulates the telecom industry itself and can fine violators directly.
Use Your Phone’s Built-In Spam Report
Both iOS and Android have a spam-report option inside the messaging app. Using it helps refine the spam filters that protect every other user on the platform.
iPhone
When a text arrives from someone who isn’t in your contacts, a “Report Spam” link appears under the message. Tap it, then tap “Delete and Report Spam.”7Apple Support. Report Spam and Block Senders in Messages on iPhone
Android (Google Messages)
Open the conversation, tap the three-dot menu, choose Details, then tap “Block & report spam.”8Google Messages. Report Spam in Google Messages – Android That both sends the content to Google’s spam systems and blocks the sender.
Report Impersonation to the Real Company or Agency
If the text pretends to come from a known organization, reporting it there gives that organization’s security team what they need to take down phishing sites and pursue the sender.
IRS or Tax-Related
Forward the sender’s phone number, the message contents, the date and time, and your own phone number to phishing@irs.gov with the subject line “Text,” then delete the original.9Internal Revenue Service. Report Fake IRS, Treasury or Tax-Related Emails and Messages
Social Security
Use the SSA Office of the Inspector General’s form at secure.ssa.gov/oig/scam and select the Text Message option when it asks how you were contacted.10Office of Inspector General. Report Scams
Banks and Retailers
If the text impersonates your bank, call the number on the back of your card (not any number in the text) and ask for the fraud department. For a fake Amazon message, forward it to reportascam@amazon.com.11Amazon. Report a Scam Most large companies maintain a similar phishing address.
Report to the FBI if You Lost Money
If you sent money, gave up financial account details, or otherwise lost funds because of a scam text, file at the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center, ic3.gov. IC3 uses the reports for criminal investigations, and reporting quickly can help support recovery of lost funds.12Federal Bureau of Investigation. On the Internet: Be Cautious When Connected
If You Already Clicked a Link or Shared Information
Reporting isn’t the whole job once you’ve interacted with the message. Take these steps in addition to the reports above:
- Run a security scan. On Android, open the Play Store, tap your profile, tap Play Protect, and scan. Uninstall anything unfamiliar. On iPhone, install any pending iOS update, since Apple patches vulnerabilities through updates.13Google Account Help. Remove Malware or Unsafe Software – Android
- Change any password you entered on a suspicious page, and change it anywhere else you reused it. Verify with the real company through a number or website you already trust.14Federal Trade Commission. How to Recognize and Avoid Phishing Scams
- If you gave up a Social Security number or similar sensitive data, place a free credit freeze with Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. A freeze blocks new credit accounts in your name, lasts until you lift it, and doesn’t affect your credit score.15Federal Trade Commission. Credit Freezes and Fraud Alerts
- Go to IdentityTheft.gov to generate an Identity Theft Report and get a step-by-step recovery plan with pre-filled letters.16Federal Trade Commission. What to Do Right Away – IdentityTheft.gov
You Can Also Sue Under the TCPA
The Telephone Consumer Protection Act lets you sue the sender for $500 per unauthorized text, and a court can triple that to $1,500 per message if it finds the violation was willful.17Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 47 USC 227 – Restrictions on Use of Telephone Equipment Save the original text (screenshots hold up best), the sender’s number, and the date and time. The claims are small enough for small claims court in most jurisdictions, so you don’t necessarily need a lawyer.
One practical limit: many scammers use spoofed numbers or operate abroad, so identifying who to sue is often impossible. A TCPA case works best when the sender is a real business that texted you without consent, not an anonymous criminal.