Spam Ads and Pop-Ups – Tips To Remove Them From The AT&T Community

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You Are The Firewall​​

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​​Do pop-ups show up on your home screen? What about spam ads? These can be a pain! Although AT&T and the device manufacturer are always doing our best to keep your devices updated with the latest security improvements, we can’t prevent it all. With that said, we want to give you some tips that may help resolve most of these issues!​​

​​ ​​​​Uninstall Recently Installed Apps​​

​​Some Free apps use advertising to generate revenue. You may notice advertising pop ups every now and then. In some instances, the advertising may even display on your home screen. To disable or remove these advertisements, you may need to uninstall the apps you recently downloaded. If this still doesn’t work, you may need to uninstall all free apps to remove the home screen spam ad.​​

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​​Preventing & Getting Rid of Pop-Ups​​

​​Some websites you visit may be unsafe and display ​​​​spam ads​​​​. These spam ads may display a message that your device is unsafe or is affected by spyware. Some are hard to close or navigate from unless you close out of, or shut down the browser. You will find information below on how to close the browser and tips to mitigate future issues.​​

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​​Alert:​​​​ If a spam ad offers virus protection or spyware protection, we highly recommend not clicking the link as it may be an attempt to get your personal information.​​

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​​Home Screen Spam Ads:​​​​ If the above does not help and you are unable to remove spam ads on your home screen or they continue to populate, please contact the device manufacturer.​​

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​​Texting Scams​​

​​You may get a text messag asking you to download a file or to visit a website from an unknown number. This is known as SMiShing and is an attempt to lead you to a fake website or a scam to get your personal information. Do not share any personal information unless you initiate the contact.​​

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​​To report texting scams, forward the text to ​​​​7726​​​​. You will find more ways to report texting issues ​​​​here​​​​.​​

​Have questions or concerns? ​

​Phone call/robocall fraud​
​You can report suspicious and unwanted calls to our Fraud Department at https://www.att.com/support/pages/report-call-or-text.​

​Email scam​
​Please forward the suspicious email to abuse@att.net. ​

​Text scam/inappropriate text messages​
​If you receive a suspicious text message, forward it to us. Get step-by-step instructions to report unwanted text messages at https://about.att.com/pages/cyberaware/ni/blog/forward_7726. ​

​AT&T account fraud or unknown charges/transactions​
​If you suspect you are a target of fraud on your AT&T mobile phone account, you can report it to our Fraud team using the form found at https://attfraud.custhelp.com/app/mobility. ​

​General Scam​
​We can only assist with things related to your AT&T account. ​
​For possible fraud on a non-AT&T account, please call the customer service number for that account at the top of your bill.​

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​​Remember, ​​​​You are the firewall​​​​!​​

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​​ChrisZ, AT&T Community Specialist  ​​

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