Wrong Number Text Scams — why "Is this Sarah?" is never a wrong number

A 'wrong number' text scam is an unsolicited SMS, WhatsApp, iMessage, or Telegram message that pretends to be sent to the wrong person — typical openers are 'Is this Sarah?', 'Hi David, are we still on for dinner?', or 'Sorry, my assistant gave me the wrong number'. The goal is not to find a friend — it's to start a conversation. If you reply 'wrong number', they apologise warmly, ask how your day is going, and over the next 3–8 weeks build a friendship or romance that ends with you being introduced to a fake crypto-trading platform. This is the entry point for pig-butchering scams (also called sha zhu pan, 'shā zhū pán').

Scam syndicates (mostly operating out of compounds in Cambodia, Myanmar, and Laos) buy phone-number lists in bulk — leaked from breaches, scraped from social media, or generated sequentially. They send millions of these openers a day. Receiving one does not mean you've been personally targeted; it means your number is in a list. But replying — even with 'wrong number' — flags you as a live, engaged number and you'll receive more.

No. Any reply — including 'wrong number', 'who is this?', or 'stop texting me' — confirms to the scammer that the number is active and that a human read the message. Your number is then sold up the chain or moved to a higher-priority list. The only safe response is to block and report the number without replying.

After the initial 'wrong number' apology, the scammer keeps the conversation going with low-pressure small talk — your job, your city, your weekend plans. Over weeks they share photos (stolen from real people's Instagram), build emotional intimacy or a romance, and casually mention how their 'uncle' or 'crypto mentor' taught them a trading strategy. They walk you through opening an account on a fake crypto exchange that looks legitimate — you see real-looking gains, withdraw a small amount successfully, then deposit larger sums. When you try to withdraw real money, you hit endless 'tax' and 'verification' fees. The platform was always controlled by them.

No. Pig-butchering operations use stolen photos from real people's Instagram, TikTok, and dating profiles. The most common personas are attractive Asian women aged 25–35 in Singapore, Hong Kong, or Tokyo, or successful-looking men in finance or crypto. Reverse-image-search any photo they send (Google Lens or TinEye) and you'll usually find the original within minutes. AI-generated photos are increasingly common too — look for inconsistent jewellery, melted backgrounds, or perfectly symmetrical faces.

Almost certainly yes. Pig-butchering scripts are designed to build trust for 4–10 weeks before any mention of trading or money. The longer they wait, the more invested you feel, and the larger the eventual deposit. If you met them through an unsolicited text, dating-app match that quickly moved to WhatsApp/Telegram, or a 'wrong number' message — the financial ask is coming. Run a free GACS website check on any 'trading platform' they show you.

Stop depositing immediately. Every additional 'tax', 'unlock fee', or 'verification charge' is the same scam. Screenshot every chat, deposit, and the platform interface. Report to IC3 (US, ic3.gov), Action Fraud (UK, 0300 123 2040), or your national cybercrime unit. Report the wallet address to GACS so others are warned. Do not engage with anyone who DMs you offering 'crypto recovery' — they are second-stage scammers targeting the victim list.