FedEx or UPS Scam Text: How to Tell and What to Do If You Clicked

A text says FedEx or UPS can’t deliver your package until you pay a fee, settle customs duties, fix your address or reschedule. Texts like these are a common scam, but a FedEx duties text can be real, so the safe move is the same either way: check on the carrier’s own website, never through the link. Here’s how, plus what to do if you already clicked or paid, and how to report it.

How to check if a FedEx or UPS text is real

You don’t have to judge the text. Check the package yourself.

1. Don’t tap the link, reply, or call a number in the text. The FCC says never to click a link or call back the number from an unexpected delivery notice (FCC).
2. Get the tracking number from the seller. Many stores put it in the order confirmation email (FCC), and you can look up the delivery status on the site where you bought the item (FTC). If the text shows a tracking number or order details, make sure they match what the merchant gave you.
3. Type fedex.com or ups.com into your browser, or open the carrier’s app, and enter that tracking number. UPS says to use “ups.com” rather than a link embedded in another source (UPS).
4. Look for a real problem there. UPS calls tracking “the safest way to see if any fees are due.” If the carrier’s own site shows no fee, hold or address issue, don’t act on the text.

Not expecting a package? The FTC’s advice for an unexpected delivery message with a link: don’t click (FTC).

What FedEx and UPS say they do and don’t send

Both carriers do send real texts. The FCC sums up their fraud pages this way: both “say they do not seek payment or personal information through unsolicited texts and email” (FCC). The details:

	FedEx	UPS
Real delivery texts	Tracking alerts by email or text through FedEx Delivery Manager, a free sign-up (FedEx)	Status texts for shipments you ask to follow. In the U.S., its text program uses 75137 or 24031 (UPS)
Asking for money	May text or email a secure link to pay duties and taxes on international packages (FedEx)	“Only a few packages require money for delivery: Collect on delivery, duties or taxes” (UPS)
Asking for personal details	Doesn’t request account credentials or identity details “via unsolicited mail, email, or text” (FedEx)	Doesn’t request payments, personal or financial information, IDs or passwords “in an unsolicited manner” (UPS)
After a missed delivery	Leaves a door tag with a number you can track (FedEx)	Leaves a UPS Delivery Notice; you track the package to make other arrangements (UPS)

Still, “don’t assume a text from a known company or organization is legit,” the FTC says. Confirm on the carrier’s site.

Customs and duties texts: the one that can be real

New de minimis rules took effect in August 2025 for imported goods under $800. Scammers now use that confusion to send texts saying your purchase is “stuck in customs” or won’t arrive until a tariff is paid, the FCC warns.

But carriers do collect real import charges:

• FedEx says that once an international package arrives in the U.S., it will tell you if duties or taxes are due and send a secure link to its FedEx Import Tool by email or text. The link works for 48 hours. If you don’t pay by then, you get a paper invoice (FedEx).
• UPS lists duties and taxes among the few reasons money is due on delivery and points you to tracking to check (UPS).

To check a duties text without using its link:

1. Ask whether the package crossed a border. Duties are government charges on imports (FedEx). If you ordered nothing from abroad, be very suspicious.
2. FedEx: type fedex.com and find the FedEx Import Tool. You can sign in with the email or mobile number tied to the shipment, and FedEx sends you a one-time code (FedEx). FedEx says you can verify duty messages and amounts there (FedEx).
3. UPS: track the package on ups.com.
4. Check the seller’s order page. Legitimate companies tell you up front about extra fees or include them in the price (FCC).
5. Watch how they want to be paid. Anyone who insists on gift cards, store credit cards or crypto as the only way to pay is a scammer (FCC).

Common FedEx and UPS scam texts

Fake package delivery problems were the most reported text scam in 2024, usually posing as USPS. People reported losing $470 million to text scams of all kinds that year (FTC, April 2025). The FedEx and UPS versions follow the same scripts:

• A delivery or “redelivery” fee. Fake UPS messages generally ask for personal information or a payment before you get the package (UPS). Many people reported paying a small “redelivery fee” that was really a trick to get their card or Social Security number (FTC). FedEx lists redelivering your package among the free options in FedEx Delivery Manager (FedEx).
• An address problem. The FCC’s sample UPS scam text reads “we are having issues releasing your package” and “Please update shipping directions,” then gives a link (FCC). Others say your item is ready to ship but you must update your shipping preferences (FTC). FedEx says you update a delivery address by logging in to fedex.com and opening FedEx Delivery Manager (FedEx).
• A missed delivery. The text says you missed a delivery attempt and links to a page to reschedule. Some warn the package goes back to the sender if you don’t act right away (FTC). UPS says it may make up to three delivery attempts before returning a package, and that tracking is how you prevent a return or change the delivery (UPS).
• An account or invoice request. Fake messages may say you need to update your UPS account with personal information or a copy of your UPS invoice (UPS).

Other red flags: pressure to act quickly (FCC), spelling mistakes and generic greetings (UPS), and misspelled web addresses (FedEx). FedEx says fake “delivery failure” emails tend to increase close to the holidays. In October 2026, its fraud page also warned of emails and texts urging people to visit a web address ending in “.shop” (FedEx).

If the text says it’s from USPS instead, see USPS text scams: the rules there are different.

What to do now: find your situation

What happened	What to do first
You got the text but didn’t tap anything	Don’t reply. Report it, then delete it.
You tapped the link but didn’t type anything	Close the page, update your phone, and report the text.
You entered a card number or paid a fee	Call your card issuer using the number on the back of your card.
You entered your Social Security number or a password	Follow IdentityTheft.gov’s steps and freeze your credit.

The scam recovery checklist can turn your answers into a step-by-step list.

You only got the text

Don’t reply or tap anything (FTC). Report it (see below). Then delete and block it, so you don’t accidentally interact with it later (UPS).

You tapped the link but didn’t type anything

Links in these texts may lead to a fake website or contain malware, UPS warns.

1. Close the page and don’t go back.
2. Update your phone and apps. Updates often include critical security patches (FTC).
3. Think something downloaded? Update your security software, run a scan and remove anything it flags (FTC).
4. Watch for signs of malware, like lots of pop-up ads, a browser that sends you to sites you didn’t choose, or messages you didn’t write (FTC).

More: what to do if you clicked a phishing link.

You entered your card number or paid a fee

1. Call your card issuer using the number on the back of your card or its app, never a number from the text. Ask it to cancel the card and send a new one (IdentityTheft.gov). Say a scammer tricked you and ask for a refund (FTC).
2. Mention any code you typed. If the fake page asked for a verification code your bank sent you, tell the bank. Anyone who asks for that code is a scammer (FTC).
3. Check every transaction. For a credit card dispute in writing, your letter should reach the issuer within 60 days after the first bill with the error was sent to you (FTC).
4. Paid with PayPal or another app? Report it to the app and ask it to reverse the payment (FTC). See scammed on PayPal.

Full steps: I gave a scammer my credit card number.

You entered your Social Security number or a password

1. Has anyone used your information? If yes, report it at IdentityTheft.gov to get a recovery plan.
2. If not, or you’re not sure, follow the steps for information that was lost or stolen.
3. Freeze your credit with Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. It’s free and doesn’t affect your credit score (FTC). How: freeze your credit.
4. Typed a password? Change it, plus anywhere else you use it, and turn on two-factor authentication (FTC).

Full steps: I gave a scammer my Social Security number.

Can I get my money back?

It depends on how you paid and how fast you report it. FedEx’s advice if you lost money: contact your bank immediately (FedEx).

When your card number was used but you still have the card, the FTC explains the federal limits like this:

Card type	If your number was used but the card wasn’t lost or stolen
Credit card	You aren’t responsible for charges you didn’t authorize.
Debit card	You aren’t responsible for transactions you didn’t authorize if you report within 60 calendar days after your statement is sent to you.

The “fee” you approved yourself is less certain. Whether you get it back is up to your card issuer, so report it right away and ask.

How to report a FedEx or UPS scam text

1. FedEx: forward the message to abuse@fedex.com (FedEx).
2. UPS: its fraud page offers an “Email UPS” link, which asks you to sign in to a UPS account (UPS). No account? Use the next two steps.
3. Forward the text to 7726 (SPAM) and use your messaging app’s “report junk” option (FTC).
4. Report it to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. Both carriers’ fraud pages link there.
5. Lost money? FedEx also suggests the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center or your state attorney general’s office.

The report-a-scam tool lists official channels by type of scam.

Watch for the follow-up scam

• “Recovery” offers. Scammers buy lists of people who have already paid scammers. Government agencies and legitimate organizations never ask for money to help you get a refund (FTC).
• A call from “FedEx” or “UPS.” A real UPS representative can always give you a tracking number to verify on its website (UPS). Call-back numbers in fake notices may reach a scam “operator” who asks to verify your account or card number (FCC).

What varies

• Who pays duties. The shipper, the recipient or a third party can be designated to pay (FedEx).
• What you signed up for. With FedEx Delivery Manager or UPS text updates, some texts are real. Still check on the carrier’s site.
• Your card issuer. Refund decisions differ by issuer, and debit cards follow different federal rules than credit cards.
• Your phone carrier. Several providers let you block a sender by forwarding texts to 7726; check with yours (FCC).
• The company named. For fake Amazon order texts, see Amazon scam call or text.