This New Smartphone Scam Could Cost You Your New Android Or iPhone - Here's How

Scams have become more rampant than ever in the age of the internet. Connecting to the online world can be great for opening a new realm of possibilities for information access. However, it also inadvertently opens the door to more scammers and bad actors trying to get access to your private information by pulling one over on you. Scams have become so prevalent, in fact, that companies like Google have launched new scam detection features to help detect scam attempts using specially trained AI. One of the latest scams going around, though, has a lot more to do with your phone than anything and has been hitting users who recently upgraded or purchased new devices.

These scams aren't exactly a new formula, as we've seen them used in the past, too. Google warned Gmail users about a similar type of scam a few months ago. However, it does raise some very big questions about how scammers are getting their information. That's because the scammers know exactly what carrier you use, as well as information on the type of phone that you ordered. Sometimes they may even offer gift cards for the trouble, trying to sweeten the deal.

If you receive a call like this, then you should never give any of your personal information. Instead, hang up the phone and contact your carrier directly to verify that there is no issue. Additionally, many companies will even provide a warning that they will never call in regard to your account.

According to a Reddit post, the scam is focused on users who have received new phones recently. In their post on Reddit, a user had ordered a new phone from Xfinity for their son. After receiving it from FedEx, the customer noted that they received multiple calls from the same phone number. After ignoring it several times, they finally answered the call. That's when the scammer tried to pass themselves off as an Xfinity agent, claiming that the user had received the wrong phone and that they needed to ship it back so that Xfinity could send them the correct one.

After going back and forth with the fake agent, the user ultimately ended up asking the agent to provide them with the account number the call was in regard to. They were unable to do this, so the user hung up the phone. And other reports show that this has been happening to others, too, and that it isn't just tied to Xfinity, as ZDNet notes that a Spectrum customer reported being the target of the same scam.

It's easy to see how the scam could work, too. You'd send your device out to the scammer using the information they give you, which would then give them your device. From there, they could potentially sell it off or even use it to try to get information about you to use in other ways. Because of this, it's best to just avoid the issue altogether and keep an eye out for scams like this if you're planning to purchase a new phone in the near future — like the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra.