Amazon job scam texts are spreading again with a new twist

Clicking links in a fake party invitation email can install malware that gives criminals remote access to your computer and personal information, Kurt "CyberGuy" Knutsson explains.

A text lands on your phone offering a remote Amazon job you never applied for. The work supposedly takes about an hour a day and pays as much as $600. Sounds amazing, right?

We recently received one of these messages. It claims to come from "Lauren Whitmore from the Amazon Remote Recruitment Team" and says Amazon merchants need help with quick "product refreshes."

There is only one problem: the offer has scam written all over it. Here's how this latest Amazon job scam works, the red flags to watch for and what you can do to protect yourself.

New! Free live CyberGuy class: Protect Your Money From Today’s Biggest Threats

Join us Saturday, August 29, at 10 AM ET for a free CyberGuy LIVE class covering five simple steps to help defend yourself against AI scams, fraud, identity theft and financial hacks. Kurt "CyberGuy" Knutsson will explain how to set up bank alerts, strengthen your account logins, protect your phone number, freeze your credit and help secure your retirement savings against unauthorized transfers. No technical experience is needed. You’ll also receive our financial protection checklist, and every registrant will get a link to the class recording afterward.

Reserve your free spot today at CyberGuyLive.com.

AMAZON RECALL TEXT SCAM COMES WITH RED FLAGS

A fake Amazon recruitment text promises up to $600 a day for simple remote work, but several warning signs point to a scam. (Kurt "CyberGuy" Knutsson)

The message says your "background" makes you a good fit for a "stress-free, task-based remote position." Yet there is no explanation of how this supposed recruiter found you. There is no job posting either. Instead, the text lays out an unusually generous offer:

Finally, it says applicants must be at least 23 and tells you to text "More Info" to a separate phone number. That combination should immediately raise questions.

Here is where the pattern becomes hard to ignore. A July 2026 BBB Scam Tracker report describes someone claiming to represent Amazon's Remote Recruitment Team. That message offered 60 to 90 minutes of work per day, four days a week. It also promised $100 to $600 daily and included the same unusual $5,300 base-pay figure.

The similarities keep going. The reported message promised 15 to 20 days of paid leave, claimed only 18 positions were available and asked people to text "More Info" to another phone number. You can see the BBB Scam Tracker report at bbb.org/scamtracker/. We have covered Amazon job scam texts before. However, this latest message caught my attention because a remarkably similar version has been reported recently through BBB Scam Tracker. The names and phone numbers change, but much of the sales pitch remains almost word for word.

Other reports show scammers swapping out the recruiter's name and contact information while keeping the basic offer intact. That tells you something important about these campaigns. The specific sender can change very quickly.

We reached out to Amazon about the recruitment message we received and asked whether the company is aware of these impersonation attempts and what consumers should do if they receive one.

An Amazon spokesperson told CyberGuy:

"Scammers that attempt to impersonate Amazon put consumers at risk. We will continue to invest in protecting consumers and educating the public on scam avoidance. We encourage consumers to report suspected scams to us so that we can protect their accounts and refer bad actors to law enforcement to help keep consumers safe. Please visit our help pages to find additional information on how to identify scams and report them at amazon.com/ReportAScam."

Amazon's guidance reinforces one of the safest responses to a suspicious recruitment message: do not engage with the sender. Verify the opportunity independently and report the impersonation through Amazon's official channels.

Scammers can keep a successful pitch alive by making small adjustments. One text may use a different recruiter name. Another may come from a new email account or phone number. Even details such as the minimum age can change.

The underlying pitch stays recognizable: easy remote work, very little time required and unusually high pay. That is why searching one phone number will only take you so far.

By the time someone reports it, scammers may already be contacting people from another number. Learning the warning signs gives you a better defense.

FCC ROBOCALL CRACKDOWN COULD CHANGE PHONE PRIVACY

Scammers are impersonating Amazon recruiters in texts promising remote work, minimal hours and pay of up to $600 a day. (Kurt "CyberGuy" Knutsson)

This particular message contains several clues that should make you suspicious.

Our message arrived from an address ending in @hotmail.com. Someone claiming to recruit for Amazon should not need a free personal email account to contact potential employees. The FTC recommends checking a recruiter's email address and verifying that it actually belongs to the company the person claims to represent.

The sender claims, "We reviewed your background." Reviewed it where? The text never mentions an application, résumé submission or previous conversation. Unexpected job offers can feel flattering, especially if you are looking for extra income. That makes it easier to overlook details that would normally make you suspicious. Amazon's official jobs website is the safest place to verify whether a position actually exists.

The message says you could earn as much as $600 for roughly 60 to 90 minutes of simple work. That should set off alarms. The FTC has repeatedly warned that work-from-home scams often advertise high earnings for very little time or effort. When a job barely explains the work but spends plenty of time describing the money, slow down.

What exactly does "help Amazon merchants perform quick product refreshes" mean? The message never explains. There is no department, manager or detailed job description. There isn’t even a link to an official Amazon job listing. You get plenty of information about what you might earn and very little about what you would actually do.

The message says only 18 positions remain. That number also appears in other reported versions of the scam. Creating scarcity can push people to respond quickly instead of checking whether the opportunity is legitimate. Do not let a countdown, limited opening or supposed deadline rush you into sharing information.

The text comes from one sender but asks you to send "More Info" to a completely different phone number. There is no Amazon hiring portal involved. There is no official application link either. That extra handoff is another reason to stop and verify the opportunity independently.

Our message says you must be at least 23. Other reported versions of similar recruitment texts have changed the minimum age. When core details shift from one otherwise nearly identical message to another, that is another sign you may be looking at a recycled scam script.

One detail in the screenshot could create confusion. The conversation displays iMessage Encrypted. That means iMessage protects the contents of the conversation with encryption. It does not mean Apple has verified that the person sending the message works for Amazon. A scammer can send an encrypted iMessage too.

We did not respond to this sender, and I do not recommend experimenting with suspicious numbers yourself. Therefore, we cannot say exactly what the person behind this particular message would request next. However, the FTC warns that fake recruiters may eventually ask victims for personal information such as Social Security numbers or banking details. Some employment scams also lead to so-called task scams.

In those schemes, you may see what looks like money accumulating in an online account while completing simple tasks. Eventually, the platform tells you that you must deposit your own money to continue or withdraw your supposed earnings. Once your real money goes in, getting it back can be extremely difficult. We reached out to Amazon for comment regarding this latest text scam, but did not hear back before our deadline.

FBI HELPS TAKE DOWN AI PHISHING RING

Amazon job scam texts use changing recruiter names and phone numbers while repeating promises of easy remote work and unusually high pay. (Photo by Elisa Schu/picture alliance via Getty Images)

You do not need to investigate every stranger who claims to be a recruiter. A few checks can help you separate a legitimate opportunity from a dangerous one.

Go to Amazon Jobs at amazon.jobs/ yourself and search for the position. Do not use a hiring link supplied by an unsolicited recruiter unless you have independently verified it. If the job is real, you should be able to find information about it through Amazon's official recruiting channels.

Do not text "More Info" just to see what happens. Instead, report the message, delete it and block the sender. Interacting with scammers can tell them that your phone number is active.

Never send sensitive information to someone who unexpectedly contacts you about a job. That includes your Social Security number, driver's license information or banking details. A legitimate employer should have a formal hiring process before requesting sensitive onboarding information.

Strong antivirus software can help protect you if a fake recruiter sends you to a malicious website or tries to get you to download something dangerous. It can warn you about suspicious links, block known threats and help detect malware on supported devices. No security tool can catch every scam, so you should still verify unexpected job offers before clicking anything. Get my picks for the best 2026 antivirus protection winners for your Windows, Mac, Android & iOS devices at Cyberguy.com.

Scammers can use information from data brokers and people-search sites to make an unexpected job pitch feel more believable. Consider using a personal data removal service to find and remove your information from these sites. It will not stop every scam text, but reducing what is publicly available can make it harder for scammers to target you with convincing personal details. Check out my top picks for data removal services and get a free scan to find out if your personal information is already out on the web by visiting Cyberguy.com.

If someone asks you to pay for training, equipment or access to work, walk away. The FTC says legitimate employers do not charge people for the promise of employment. Be especially cautious if a recruiter asks you to deposit money, purchase cryptocurrency or send funds through a payment app.

Amazon encourages consumers to report suspected scams so the company can take steps to protect customers and refer bad actors to law enforcement when appropriate. You can learn how to identify Amazon scams and report suspicious communications through Amazon's official help pages. You can also report employment scams through the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.

The screenshot we received already shows Apple's Report Spam option underneath the message. If you see that option, use it. Then delete the conversation and block the sender. For another quick way to evaluate suspicious texts, check out my CyberGuy guide, The scam text test: spot danger before you tap.

What gets me about this Amazon job scam is how easily the people behind it can keep the campaign going. The recruiter name can change. So can the phone number and email address. Yet the promise of easy work and $600-a-day pay keeps showing up. That means looking up one sender isn’t enough. Pay closer attention to the offer itself. A famous company name gives scammers instant credibility. Pair that with flexible work and eye-popping pay, and it becomes easy to understand why someone might respond. Before you do, go around the text. Visit the company's real website yourself and search for the position there. If you cannot independently verify the job, do not hand the sender personal information or money. That extra check takes a minute. Recovering from a scam can take far longer.

Have you received this Amazon $600-a-day job offer from a different name or phone number? How did you respond? Write to us and let us know, as your experience could help us track how this scam is changing. Let us know by writing to us at Cyberguy.com.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

Kurt "CyberGuy" Knutsson is an award-winning tech journalist who has a deep love of technology, gear and gadgets that make life better with his contributions for Fox News & FOX Business beginning mornings on "FOX & Friends." Got a tech question? Get Kurt’s free CyberGuy Newsletter, share your voice, a story idea or comment at CyberGuy.com.

COPYRIGHT DISCLAIMERS

4English does not own the rights to this content. All rights belong to the owner. 4English only uses this content to help users learn English via the app's features. Contact to request the removal of your content: contact@4englishapp.com.

Prática de escuta