Dealing with Spoofed Text Messages: My Recent Experience

Recently, I found myself in a rather concerning situation involving my phone number. After chatting with a longtime friend during a group Zoom call, they informed me that they had been receiving strange text messages from my number—not initiated by me. It was a bewildering and frustrating revelation.

Initially, I considered the possibility of number spoofing, a common tactic employed by scammers. However, the content of these messages didn’t have a fraudulent tone; instead, they resembled typical “new phone, who’s this?” texts. What raised even more alarm were the photos that accompanied these messages. I recognized them as images frequently used by “troll” accounts across various online platforms, leading me to suspect that someone might be deliberately playing tricks by spoofing my number, possibly just to see how I—and my contacts—would react.

If you’re interested in seeing the actual messages, I shared screenshots on my Reddit post in the r/Verizon community, which can be found here.

Seeking Solutions

Feeling anxious about the implications of the situation—especially since I rely on this phone for work—I reached out for advice. Thankfully, I received a wealth of insights and support from the Reddit community. I promptly contacted Verizon, who confirmed that the messages were not being sent through their network. This lead me to consider that my Apple ID might have been compromised. I took immediate action by changing my password.

After reaching out to my friend to inform them of the issue, I also advised them and others who might potentially be affected to contact me directly. This seemed like the best course of action for managing the fallout and ensuring that everyone was aware of the situation.

Additional Thoughts

In response to some questions, I also clarified that these bizarre messages were directed solely at that particular friend back in September. Living in a remote area since March due to the pandemic, my phone’s exposure has been limited to family and a small group of older colleagues—individuals who are unlikely to instigate such a situation.

While it’s possible that this was a mere prank, the fact that someone is able to spoof numbers in this way is concerning. Though it may not seem like someone is aiming to hack my accounts—given that they are making it