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USPS text scam: is that delivery text real?

Editorially reviewed · Last updated July 21, 2026

Yes — this is a scam. USPS doesn't text you a link to pay a fee or "confirm" your address.

Text Message · Today 11:42 AM
from +1 (555) 014-2025
USPS: Your package is on hold. We couldn't deliver it due to an incomplete address. Confirm your details within 12 hours or it will be returned: usps-trackpkg.info/track
The Text message, as received
Example 2 · The “customs clearance” version
Text Message · Today 7:58 AM
from +44 555 0139
U.S. Customs: You have a USPS parcel being cleared, due to the detection of an invalid zip code address, the parcel is temporarily detained. Please confirm the zip code address information in the link within 24 hours: usps-zipverify.top/us (If the link does not open, please reply Y, then exit the message and open it again.)
Example 3 · The “redelivery fee” version
Text Message · Today 1:14 PM
from +1 (555) 019-2247
USPS: We attempted delivery today but no one was available. To schedule redelivery, a $1.99 processing fee is required: usps-redelivery-fee.info/schedule
Example 4 · The “unpaid postage” version
Text Message · Today 9:31 AM
from +63 555 0177
USPS: Your shipment is on hold at our facility due to $0.99 unpaid postage. Settle the balance within 12 hours to avoid return to sender: uspspostal-hold.com/pay

Other versions you might get: A “U.S. Customs” text about a parcel “being cleared” with a small clearance fee, a “redelivery fee” of a dollar or two, a “failed delivery” needing your address, or “Your USPS parcel is waiting — update your info.” Some even ask you to reply “Y” and reopen the link — that’s the scam working around your phone’s link-blocking. Same trap, same fix.

Word-for-word versions going around

Each of these is a real text, quoted exactly as people received it. If yours matches one — even loosely — it’s the same scam.

  • “The USPS package has arrived at the warehouse and cannot be delivered due to incomplete address information ... please click on the image to share it to Google browser, complete your address ...”
    Documented by Brown University OIT · October 2023
  • “Your package is on hold for an invalid recipient address. Fill in the correct address info by the link.”
    Documented by Krebs on Security · October 2023
  • “U.S. Post: You have a USPS parcel being cleared, due to the detection of an invalid zip code address, the parcel cannot be cleared, the parcel is temporarily detained, please confirm the zip code address information in the link within 24 hours.”
    Documented by CBS News Chicago · December 2024
  • “U.S Customs: You have a USPS parcel being cleared, due to the detection of an invalid zip code address, the parcel can not be cleared, the parcel is temporarily detained, please confirm the zip code address information in the link within 24 hours. (Please reply with a Y, then exit the text message and open it again to activate the link, or copy the link into your Safari browser and open it) Have a great day for the USPS team!”
    Documented by MalwareTips · October 2024
  • “Your courier cannot be delivered correctly, due to the wrong house number, Please confirm that the information will be delivered. https://usprenewal.com”
    Documented by Snopes · May 2022
  • “@USPS; As a reminder, A package needs your attention (3.00 $ unpaid fee). Please complete the process here: https://s.gosite.com/3tbvx87k”
    Documented by Snopes · May 2022
  • “We've failed to ship your package, for reshipment please visit https://reshipmentusps.com and confirm the compensation of (1.99)”
    Documented by Snopes · May 2022
  • “USPS package has arrived at the warehouse and could not be delivered due to an invalid zip code address being detected. Please confirm the zip code address information link.”
    Documented by Newsweek · March 2025

What to do right now

  1. Don't tap the link or enter anything. Don't reply — even "STOP" tells them the number is live.
  2. Check the package the real way. Open the USPS app or type usps.com yourself and track it there. If there's no matching item, there's no package.
  3. If you already entered card details: call your bank, freeze or replace the card, and watch for charges — scammers sell the number on within hours.
  4. Report it. Forward the text to 7726 (SPAM), then file at reportfraud.ftc.gov.
  5. Delete the message.

How to make sure it never bites you

You got this because your number is on a list scammers buy and resell, and delivery texts work because almost everyone is expecting a package. Get your number removed and add a layer between you and them — see how to stop spam texts for good.

Every current version of the USPS text

Scammers rotate the story, but almost every “USPS” text in circulation is one of five scripts. The address problem: your package “has arrived at the warehouse and cannot be delivered due to incomplete address information” — the version logged by Brown University’s phish bowl in 2023 and still circulating. The package on hold: “Your package is on hold for an invalid recipient address. Fill in the correct address info by the link” — the exact wording Krebs on Security traced to a phishing operation spoofing USPS and a dozen other national postal services. The customs clearance: a “U.S. Customs” or “U.S. Post” text about a parcel “being cleared” but “temporarily detained” over an invalid ZIP code, with a small clearance fee and a 24-hour clock. The redelivery fee: a missed delivery that supposedly costs a dollar or two to reschedule — real USPS redelivery is free. The “reply Y” trick: newer versions ask you to reply “Y” and reopen the message, or copy the link into Safari. That instruction exists because iPhones disable links from unknown senders — the scam literally needs your help to arm its own trap. Different costumes, one body: a story, a link, a form.

USPS’s own rules settle it in one glance

You don’t need to study a suspicious USPS text, because USPS has published rules that decide it instantly. The U.S. Postal Inspection Service states: “USPS will not send customers text messages or e-mails without a customer first requesting the service with a tracking number, and it will NOT contain a link.” That’s the whole test, in three questions. Did you ask for this? USPS only texts tracking updates you signed up for with a specific tracking number. Is there a link? A genuine USPS text never contains one — no exceptions, no “secure” links, no shorteners. Who sent it? USPS sends its tracking SMS from 5-digit short codes, not 10-digit mobile numbers — and never from overseas (the specimen Brown University logged arrived from a +44 UK number, about a supposedly domestic package). Add the money rule and it’s over: USPS “does not charge for these services” — tracking and redelivery are free, so any text asking for a fee has answered its own question. A text that fails one of these fails them all.

Why you got it: your number is on a list

The text has nothing to do with a real package. Scam operations blast bulk lists of phone numbers, betting that at any given moment most people are expecting something in the mail — which is why the same text lands whether you ordered yesterday or haven’t ordered in months. The bet pays: package-delivery texts are the most-reported kind of text scam, and AARP’s reporting on FTC data counts $470 million lost to text scams in 2024 — nearly $100 million more than the year before. Your number got onto those lists the ordinary ways: data breaches, apps that resold your details, people-search sites that republish them. So getting the text doesn’t mean you’ve been hacked or singled out; a blast went out and your number was in the batch. It does mean your number is in circulation, and the texts keep coming until you cut the source — see how to stop spam texts for good.

How to report it to USPS specifically

USPS has its own law-enforcement arm for exactly this, and reporting takes two minutes. Email spam@uspis.gov. The Postal Inspection Service asks that you copy the wording of the text into a new email, include your name, and attach a screenshot of the message showing the sender’s phone number and the date it was sent. Forward the text to 7726 (SPAM). Free on every major carrier — it feeds the sender number into carrier-level blocking. File at [reportfraud.ftc.gov](https://reportfraud.ftc.gov). FTC reports are what turn one person’s text into a documented campaign. If you lost money, add [ic3.gov](https://www.ic3.gov) so the FBI gets the phishing domain and the payment trail. Be clear-eyed about what reporting does: it won’t claw back a charge — that part is your bank’s job, so call them first if you paid. Reporting is how phishing domains get taken down and sender numbers get blocked before the same blast reaches someone’s mother.

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Frequently asked

I clicked the link in a USPS text — what should I do?
Don't enter anything on the page it opened, and don't tap “submit.” The U.S. Postal Inspection Service says that if you interacted with the link at all — even if you didn't hit submit — you should notify your bank or card issuer and keep an eye on your statements. If you did type a card number or password, call your bank now to freeze or replace the card, and change that password on any account where you reused it.
How can I tell a real USPS text from a fake one?
USPS only texts or emails you a tracking update if you asked for one with a tracking number — and the Postal Inspection Service says a genuine USPS message will never contain a link. So any “USPS” text with a tap-here link is a scam, full stop. Tracking is also free: USPS never texts you to pay a fee. When in doubt, ignore the text and track the package yourself at usps.com or in the app.
Does USPS charge a redelivery or reshipping fee by text?
No. The Postal Service doesn't text you asking for a small “redelivery,” “reshipping,” or “unpaid postage” fee — its tracking services are free. A text demanding a dollar or two to release your package is the scam itself, and paying it just hands your card number to a stranger. If a real package needs action, it shows up at usps.com — never through a texted link.
I got a text that my USPS parcel is “being cleared” or “awaiting clearance” — is that real?
No — it's the same smishing scam wearing a customs-clearance costume. The U.S. Postal Inspection Service says USPS never sends a tracking text or email unless you asked for one with a tracking number, and a genuine message will never contain a link. Tracking is free, so any text about a parcel “being cleared,” “awaiting clearance,” or owing a small “clearance” or “customs” fee is fake — the link just leads to a look-alike page built to take your card and details. If you're actually expecting a package, don't tap: track it yourself at usps.com or in the app.
Why does USPS keep texting me about packages?
It isn’t USPS. The Postal Inspection Service’s rule is absolute: USPS won’t text you at all unless you first requested tracking with a specific tracking number — “and it will NOT contain a link.” A steady stream of package texts means your number is on bulk lists that scam operations buy, trade, and re-blast; campaigns rotate sender numbers constantly, so blocking one doesn’t stop the next. Keep forwarding them to 7726, send a specimen to spam@uspis.gov, and to actually slow the stream, get your number off the sold lists — see how to stop spam texts for good.
I paid the fee on a USPS text — what do I do now?
Call your bank or card issuer first: freeze or replace the card and dispute the charge, however small. Don’t assume a tiny charge is the end of it — AARP documented a victim charged 99 cents whose card was later hit for $400. The Postal Inspection Service says to notify your bank even if you only interacted with the link, so watch your statements either way. If the form also took your address, date of birth, or license number, start a free recovery plan at IdentityTheft.gov. Then report it — spam@uspis.gov, 7726, and reportfraud.ftc.gov — and ignore any follow-up “refund” text. That’s the same crew taking a second pass.
Does USPS ever text from a regular phone number?
No. Real USPS tracking updates come from 5-digit short codes — the Postal Inspection Service notes that USPS “utilizes the 5-digit short codes to send and receive SMS” — and only after you’ve signed up with a tracking number. A package alert from a 10-digit mobile number is fake on arrival, and an overseas number is a confession: one specimen logged by Brown University’s phish bowl came from a +44 (UK) number, claiming to be about a domestic USPS package. You don’t need to read past the sender line.
What is spam@uspis.gov and what should I send there?
It’s the U.S. Postal Inspection Service’s reporting inbox for USPS-impersonation texts — the report that reaches the actual postal investigators. Their requested format: copy the wording of the scam text into a new email, add your name, and attach a screenshot of the message showing the sender’s phone number and the date it arrived. Then delete the text. You won’t get a personal reply, but the reports feed the casework that gets phishing domains taken down — two minutes, well spent.

Related scams

Sources

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Scams spread because people stay quiet about them. If this could have fooled you, it can fool someone you know — a parent, a friend, the family group chat. Passing it on is the easiest good thing you'll do today. It's safe to forward, and stands on its own as a record for a bank or the police.