Scam alert
Someone Coming to Collect a Phone Delivered to You? It's a Scam
Posted
Hazleton, PA · fox56.com · Arrives by a text message or a knock at the door
The short answer
A text saying the wrong phone was sent and a representative will come to your home to pick it up, or a stranger at the door asking for a phone you never ordered, is the sign to stop. Pennsylvania State Police warned about both versions in November 2026. Don't hand over the package. Call the phone company yourself on the number from its website or your bill, not a number in the text. If someone at the door seems to be committing a crime, call 911.
What is happening
In early November 2026, Pennsylvania State Police in Hazleton warned of two scams tied to cell phone deliveries. In one, a person who ordered a new phone gets a text saying the wrong phone was sent and that a representative for the carrier will come to the home to pick it up; in the other, a phone the person never ordered is delivered, and then someone shows up claiming to be from the company to take it back. Police said not to hand the package over, to call the company on its own number rather than a number in the text, and to call 911 if anything seems criminal, FOX56 and the Standard-Speaker reported.
How to recognize it
- Soon after a new phone arrives, a text says the wrong phone was sent and a replacement is coming.
- The text says a representative will come to your home to collect the first phone.
- A phone you never ordered is delivered, and then someone shows up saying they are there to take it back.
- The text gives its own phone number to call instead of the company's usual customer service number.
What to do instead
- Don't hand a delivered phone or package to anyone who comes to the door to collect it.
- Call the phone company yourself on the number from its website, your bill or your account, not a number in the text.
- Don't reply to the text or tap any link in it.
- If someone at the door pushes, close the door and call police. Call 911 if anything seems criminal.
- Keep the box and the text so you can show them to the company and to police.
- If you want to tell someone, the rule is: never hand a delivered phone to someone who shows up to collect it.
If it already happened
Responding to one of these is common and understandable. These steps are what people usually take next.
- Being fooled by someone who seemed to know about your order is not a failing.
- Call the phone company on the number from its website or your bill, tell it the phone was taken, and ask what to do about the order and the line.
- Report it to your local police, and keep the text and any delivery details.
- Report it at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
Common questions
- The person at the door knew about my phone order. Doesn't that make it real?
- No. In the scam Pennsylvania State Police described, the text arrives after a real phone order, so knowing about the order does not prove who is asking. Check with the company on a number you look up yourself before handing anything over.
- What if a phone shows up that I never ordered?
- Pennsylvania State Police said that whether or not you ordered it, don't hand the package to people who come to the door to retrieve it. Call the company directly on its own number to sort it out.
Practice this safely
Practice saying no to someone at the door who asks for a delivered package, then calling the company on a number you looked up yourself.
Every story is fictional. There is no timer, no score, and no real message, payment, or account.
Tell someone
Copy a short note you can paste into a text or email. It names the scam, the next step, and this page. Nothing is sent from this site.
Someone Coming to Collect a Phone Delivered to You? It's a Scam A text saying the wrong phone was sent and a representative will come to your home to pick it up, or a stranger at the door asking for a phone you never ordered, is the sign to stop. Pennsylvania State Police warned about both versions in November 2026. Don't hand over the package. Call the phone company yourself on the number from its website or your bill, not a number in the text. If someone at the door seems to be committing a crime, call 911. Read the full alert: https://endscamsproject.com/latest-scams/wrong-phone-delivery-pickup-scam
Where this comes from
These links open the published sources in a new tab. The destination is shown before you open it.
- FOX56: PSP warns of scam involving cell phone deliveries and home pickups (November 2, 2026) (opens in a new tab)
fox56.com
- Standard-Speaker: PSP warn residents of phone scam (November 2, 2026) (opens in a new tab)
standardspeaker.com
- Report fraud to the Federal Trade Commission (opens in a new tab)
ReportFraud.ftc.gov
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