Apple Approval Notice text message scam

You haven't been billed for anything. It's a scam to make you panic and respond. Then they'll ask for detailed account info to cheat you out of your money. The first clue is that it came from a Gmail account. IGNORE it, do not respond!!!!

MHowl wrote:

I believe this is a scam. I did not call but others say it is.

Some very few of many frauds: Recognize and avoid social engineering schemes including phishing messages, phony support calls, and other scams - Apple Support

Lots more scams: https://reddit.com/r/scams

Received text message:

“Apple Approval Notice

We have noticed that your Apple iCloud id

Word salad. It’s also called an “Apple Account”, formerly “Apple ID”.

The scammers haven’t caught up with the name change.

…was recently used at "APPLE STORE - CA" for $143.95, paid by Apple Pay Pre Authorization.

More word salad

Also some suspicious sign in request and apple pay activation request detected.

More word salad, typos and bad grammar and all.

That looks like suspicious to us.

Yeah, even more mis-grammatical word salad

In order to maintain the security and privacy of your account we have placed those request on hold. 

Wow, even more word salad.

If NOT you? talk to an Apple Representative.

Word salad.

When fraud is suspected, banks default to rejecting.

They’ll ask you to confirm your (blocked) purchase, not to block some suspected-fraudulent purchase.

Failing may lead to auto debit and charge will not be reversed.

Word salad, and also not how credit card billing and payment disputes work.

Call +1 805366**** immediately to cancel this charge.

Yeah, because Apple is likely to be posting a not-toll-free telephone number, and — if you searched for it — a telephone number that goes who-knows-where, but not to Apple.

Billing Department :  Subscriptions and Billing - Official Apple Support

Hahahhahah no.

Have a great day!”

Also nope.

If this text message were from Biff’s Big Y Market and Pancake Restaurant’s Department of Fraud Prevention, I’d expect grammar and phrasing errors. Biff’s never been good at the grammars. For messages from Apple, not so much.

Now… assuming that all the above details still might not convince some folks that this message is a scam, the next stop is to contact Apple Support directly, using a telephone number that is posted at the Apple website, and ask them. Anybody can answer a phone number, and lie about who they are, too.

PS: Calling telephone numbers and SMS sending numbers and sending email addresses can all be spoofed / faked / forged, too.

PPS: for even more, see the eight pages of replies posted here.

That’s a classic scam.

Block the scammer immediately!

If you receive a suspicious email or SMS text message that looks like it's supposed to be from Apple, please email it to reportphishing@apple.com. 

Learn how to ▷ Recognize and avoid phishing messages, phony support calls, and other scams.

Good luck! 👋🏼😉

That's good, they are still making grammatical errors even in this age where various tools are available. It really makes our work easier to identify it as a scam.

People should avoid calling these numbers at all costs and do their research beforehand. A simple search would tell you that it's a big scam, and everyone is receiving these text messages. The best option is to ignore them and report them as spam.

My research also tells me that various types of scams are happening, and these scammers constantly change their methods, like claiming your 'Apple ID is suspended' or that 'you need to upgrade your Cloud ID.' They have tons of ways to scam you.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/daveywinder/2024/11/27/new-warning-for-2-billion-iphone-ipad-mac-users-your-apple-id-is-suspended/

This is the latest phishing scam designed to steal your Apple ID and password, allowing scammers to hack your account, steal your content, or trick you into buying expensive but useless software.

https://gadgetlite.com/2025/02/apple-users-beware-phishing-scam/

Jsmiley1214 wrote:

It’s March 17, 2025 and I just received this text verbatim.

The same spam has been going on for many months now, with just the sending address being changed and sometimes the phone number to call. If one number gets shut down, they can insert another. As with any Spam you receive, it is what you do with it that matters. Never call a number or use a link to provide personal information from any email or message and you never have to worry about it. Just delete and move on with your day. If you get an email that appears to be from your bank or Apple or any other company, the recommendation still applies and you can use your own methods to contact them to verify the information without using any from the email/message.

shawne144 wrote:

This is the text that I received twice this morning; by 2 different email servers, Gmail & Outlook

Yeah, that’s being spammed to millions of people.

As are some other scams, including the ”pervert” sextortion scam.

And yes, the spammers adjust the wording.

Lots more scams: https://reddit.com/r/scams

Pulling a previous reply forward…

Received text message:

“Apple Approval Notice

We have noticed that your Apple iCloud id

Word salad. It’s also called an “Apple Account”, formerly “Apple ID”.

The scammers haven’t caught up with the name change.

…was recently used at "APPLE STORE - CA" for $143.95, paid by Apple Pay Pre Authorization.

More word salad

Also some suspicious sign in request and apple pay activation request detected.

More word salad, typos and bad grammar and all.

That looks like suspicious to us.

Yeah, even more mis-grammatical word salad

In order to maintain the security and privacy of your account we have placed those request on hold. 

Wow, even more word salad.

If NOT you? talk to an Apple Representative.

Word salad.

When fraud is suspected, banks default to rejecting.

They’ll ask you to confirm your (blocked) purchase, not to block some suspected-fraudulent purchase.

Failing may lead to auto debit and charge will not be reversed.

Word salad, and also not how credit card billing and payment disputes work.

Call +1 805366**** immediately to cancel this charge.

Yeah, because Apple is likely to be posting a not-toll-free telephone number, and — if you searched for it — a telephone number that goes who-knows-where, but not to Apple.

Billing Department :  Subscriptions and Billing - Official Apple Support

Hahahhahah no.

Have a great day!”

Also nope.

If this text message were from Biff’s Big Y Market and Pancake Restaurant’s Department of Fraud Prevention, I’d expect grammar and phrasing errors. Biff’s never been good at the grammars. For messages from Apple, not so much.

Now… assuming that all the above details still might not convince some folks that this message is a scam, the next stop is to contact Apple Support directly, using a telephone number that is posted at the Apple website, and ask them. Anybody can answer a phone number, and lie about who they are, too.

PS: Calling telephone numbers and SMS sending numbers and sending email addresses can all be spoofed / faked / forged, too.

PPS: for even more, see the previous pages of replies posted here.

Jennyzazs wrote:

This is not my charge I haven’t used Apple Pay please dispute this charge thank you

Some things to consider about these messages.

• Be aware of social engineering and phishing. Folks trying to get payment info or Apple Account credentials or money directly. The sextortion “pervert” scam tries to get money directly. Well, that one tries to get cryptocurrency. Others pretend to be the Apple Account login portal to collect your credentials.
• Most payment card fraud detection systems do not operate as this scam suggests. They don’t hold and then release a payment if you don’t call, they hold a payment and will only release if you call. Apple certainly doesn’t do the countdown-to-release, nor has any other payment card I’ve ever met. They all hold until you call and release.
• As far as payment card companies are concerned, there is no such thing as a charge that cannot be reversed. Not if they can help it.
• Apple will mention their Apple Card payment card if there are issues, and Apple won’t be contacting you about other payment cards. And nowhere here is the payment card or last four of the account listed.
• If you are still concerned about a message like this, look up the number for Apple or whichever other payment card you’re using
• We’re not Apple Support, we’re other users like you. We can’t access your Apple Card account, nor your Apple Account, your billing info, nor receive a fraud report. No more than can the senders of that spam scam.
• Sending email addresses, and calling telephone numbers, and sending SMS numbers can all be faked.
• Apple spelling, phrasing, and grammar is usually quite good. Messages from Biff’s Emporium and Pancake House might not be clearly worded or well-phrased, because Biff isn’t good at the grammars, but Apple usually is.
• Apple doesn’t send SMS messages, they’ll send notifications, or they’ll display a message in Wallet app. Or both.
• Apple and most other payment providers will typically use toll-free numbers.

A review of clues of problems from some of the usual text of this spam scam:

We have noticed that your Apple id

Apple recently renamed “Apple ID” to “Apple Account”, and the spammers haven’t caught up with that.

was recently used at "APPLE STORE"

Yeah, most payment providers will offer more details about the attempted purchase. And Apple will usually use better grammar and formatting.

for $143.95, paid by Apple Pay Pre Authorization.

Apple Account balances can be used with the Apple Store, but not with Apple Pay, and “Pre Authorization” is meaningless word salad.

You’ll also find lots of discussions of $143.95 around the ‘net because the spammers have commonly been using that same sum for months, though they (or some other scammers spamming similar scams) have occasionally been using different amounts.

Also some suspicious sign in request and apple pay activation request detected.

Bad grammar, and word salad.

That looks like suspicious to us.

The “That looks like suspicious to us” is word salad.

In order to maintain the security and privacy of your account we have placed those request on hold. If NOT you? Please Call +1 850-85*-**** to talk to an Apple Representative.

If you search for that number (pr whatever other number the spammers are using right now), you’ll find it is not associated with Apple anywhere on the ‘net.

Failing may lead to auto debit and charge will not be reversed. Call +1 850-85*-**** immediately to cancel this charge.

More poor grammar, and more word salad.

Also not the way fraud detection works.

And again, “auto debit and charge will not be reversed” is not how payment cards work.

Want more info? There are twelve pages of discussions of this spam scam here, as well.

And as mentioned, look up contact info for Apple at the Apple website, and call them to confirm. Not the number in the spam. Here is a list of contact numbers posted at the Apple website:

• Contact Apple for support and service - Apple Support

As for the other reply here, I’m not sure what Syvarwolf is referring to with the region-related info.

mM444_ wrote:

Scam call re: charges in CA of $143.95. It was not me.

It was also not a charge. It was a SCAM message. Your bank will have no record of it because it didn’t come from Apple, and didn’t happen at all. The purpose was to get you to call the scammers and give them your Apple ID and password so they can steal your data. If you actually called them see→If you think your Apple ID has been compromised - Apple Support

Also See→Recognize and avoid social engineering schemes including phishing messages, phony support calls, and other scams

mM444_ wrote:

Scam call re: charges in CA of $143.95. It was not me.

Yeah. It’s a scam. A common one.

You were not hacked.

There was no payment.

Fraud detection does not work like the scam claims.

Delete the scam, and move on with your day.

Other common scams include the “hey pervert” and other sextortion scams, romance scams, kidnapping scams, tax payment scams, arrest warrant scams, cryptocurrency scams, student loan payment scams, pretty much any reason that can be imagined to convince people to send money to the scammers will have a scam.

Some few of the many scams: Recognize and avoid social engineering schemes including phishing messages, phony support calls, and other scams - Apple Support

@Smorris825 I checked under General and Language and Region as you mention above, and yes under Region example there were the same amounts. That is the "example" of how the format will appear, not actual charges against anything. So the phone is not compromised, the scammer is using a default standard apple example to fool the targeted user into thinking the charges are valid. Do not call or turn over account information of any type.

Jl1091 wrote:

Hi, good morning. I received a text message stating that my account is being used for a purchase of 143.95. Please do not use the bank transaction.

There are 18 pages in the thread you just posted to; a quick read will tell you that the message is a SCAM to steal your Apple credentials or your money. Just delete it, and do not respond to it in any way. Don’t call a number, don’t go to a web link; just DELETE it.

Here is guidance on recognizing scams→Recognize and avoid social engineering schemes including phishing messages, phony support calls, and other scams

If you DID respond to the message change your Apple ID password IMMEDIATELY→Change your Apple ID password - Apple Support

And also see this→If you think your Apple ID has been compromised - Apple Support. However, if you did not respond your account and credentials are safe.

If you get a text like this, take a deep breath—it’s almost certainly a scam. Genuine Apple messages won’t use odd grammar or push you to call sketchy numbers. Instead of calling, forward the message to reportphishing@apple.com and check your account through Apple’s official website or app. Stay safe and don’t share any personal details!

Hope this helps.

You were not billed for anything. Like Smilin-Brian said in his reply, this is a phishing attempt. His comment links to Apple's own article on how to recognise and avoid such scams.

I just got one of these (for the first time), so I simply screencapped the message before blocking the sender and reporting as junk, and then I emailed the screencapped message to reportphishing@apple.com, as suggested in their article. Pretty immediately obviously non-legit:

[Edited by Moderator]

nottemare wrote:

This is what I got. I called and he asked for my ID and first and last name and I hesitated, we got disconnected so he called me right back, from NJ…

The scammer was almost certainly not in New Jersey. Calling numbers are routinely faked.

Giving a scammer your Apple Account will get you more spam, and will get you more scams, and will get more and better-targeted phishing, but won’t compromise your security.

But giving a scammer your Apple Account password is a major problem, will compromise your security, and will lead to an exceedingly bad day.

If you gave out your password, change your Apple Account password NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW.

If you gave out your password, and as was linked in IdrisSeabright’s response immediately above:

• If you think your Apple Account has been compromised - Apple Support

If you can’t change your password, you unfortunately may well have already lost control of that account, amd everything associated with it.

Hello~ Just received what today? A phishing message?? If so click on below….

Recognize and avoid social engineering schemes including phishing messages, phony support calls, and other scams - Apple Support

If something else …I am afraid you’ll have to explain….

~Katana-San~