Everalbum text invites
In 2016 a photo-backup app sent invitation texts to the entire address books of new users, uploaded contacts during sign-up, and pushed a paid trial that was hard to decline. Recipients saw unexplained texts "from" a friend. Kept on record because the pattern — an app spamming your contacts — recurs.
- Impersonates
- Everalbum (the app itself, 2016)
- Arrives by
- SMS
- First seen
- 2016-09
- Last seen
- 2016-09
- Specimens
- 1
- Updated
- 2026-09-02
Right now the only version we have seen
How to recognise it
- A text from a friend's name inviting you to an app they never mentioned
- Sign-up asks for your contacts before it does anything
- A "free trial" with a card on file
What to do
- Do not install; if a friend really wants you on an app, ask them
- If you installed it, revoke contacts access and cancel any trial
Report:FTCSend us your version
How it changed
nothing to compare yet · one wave on record2016-09contact-book invites and a forced trial
Got a different version? A new subject line, sender, number or domain becomes the next point on this line. Redacted before publication. Send it →
02 Sept2026
Registry
Family created
Grew out of the 2016 guide, which is still linked from 30 domains and stays online unchanged.
08 Sept2016
Specimen
Specimen №1: contact-book invites and a forced trial
The guide documented the sign-up flow that harvested contacts and the invite texts.
Channel
SMS
Same trick, other brands
- No related records yet. Browse the family →
Indicators
- None on record yet. Indicators change weekly; an empty list never means an email is safe.
In other streams
Registry data
- Machine-readable
/scams/everalbum-text-invites.json- Timeline feed
/scams/everalbum-text-invites/feed.xml- Sources
- 1 · 1 change logged
- Licence
- CC BY 4.0 · attribution required
- Created / updated
- 2026-09-02 / 2026-09-02