{"id":227942,"date":"2026-03-27T04:00:58","date_gmt":"2026-03-27T11:00:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.mcafee.com\/blogs\/?p=227942"},"modified":"2026-03-26T17:11:59","modified_gmt":"2026-03-27T00:11:59","slug":"court-notice-text-scam-crunchyroll-breach","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mcafee.com\/blogs\/security-news\/court-notice-text-scam-crunchyroll-breach\/","title":{"rendered":"Got a \u201cCourt Notice\u201d Text? Ignore It. Plus, the Crunchyroll Breach: This Week in Scams"},"content":{"rendered":"

A text that looks like it came straight from a courthouse is making the rounds across the U.S. And yes, I got it too.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

First things first,\u00a0that\u2019s\u00a0a\u00a0scam. And to be clear: DON\u2019T SCAN THAT QR CODE.<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

It\u2019s\u00a0the same playbook as\u00a0<\/span>last year\u2019s toll road\u00a0scams<\/span><\/a>, just dressed up with a little more authority and a lot more pressure.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Before doing anything, our team ran it through\u00a0<\/span>McAfee\u2019s Scam Detector<\/span><\/a>. It\u00a0immediately\u00a0flagged the message as suspicious, and\u00a0that\u2019s\u00a0exactly the kind of moment this tool is built for. When something feels just real enough to second guess, it gives you a clear signal before you click, scan, or spiral.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"This
A screenshot showing Scam Detector in action.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
<\/div>\n

How the scam works<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n

The text claims\u00a0you\u2019ve\u00a0missed a payment, violated a law, or have\u00a0some kind of outstanding\u00a0\u201ccase.\u201d It then pushes you to scan a QR code or click a link to resolve it quickly.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

From there, one of two things usually happens:<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. You\u2019re taken to a fake payment page designed to steal your money, or<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
  2. You\u2019re\u00a0prompted to download something that gives scammers access to your device or data\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Either way, the goal is the same: get you to act fast before you have time to question it.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

    \"Here's
    Here\u2019s\u00a0the\u00a0scam\u00a0text I got in California.\u00a0You\u2019ll\u00a0notice it looks exactly like the others across the country.\u00a0<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

    The red flags in this message<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n