{
  "slug": "everalbum-text-invites",
  "canonical_name": "Everalbum text invites",
  "family": "unsolicited-invite",
  "impersonates": {
    "brand": "Everalbum (the app itself, 2016)",
    "disclaimer": "Not an impersonation: the messages were sent by the app on behalf of its users' address books.",
    "official_fraud_page": null
  },
  "goal": [
    "personal-data"
  ],
  "channels": [
    "sms"
  ],
  "summary": "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.",
  "status": "archived",
  "first_seen": "2016-09",
  "last_seen": "2016-09",
  "recognise": [
    "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"
  ],
  "variants": [],
  "specimen": {
    "date": "2016-09",
    "channel": "sms",
    "from": null,
    "reply_to": null,
    "subject": null,
    "attachment": null,
    "body_text": null,
    "redactions": [],
    "image": "/wp-content/uploads/setup-client-distributing-everalbum.png",
    "sources": [
      "https://soft2secure.com/knowledgebase/everalbum"
    ]
  },
  "tells": [],
  "indicators": {
    "sender_domains": [],
    "senders": [],
    "reply_to": [],
    "phone_numbers": [],
    "urls": [],
    "wallets": [],
    "attachments": [],
    "note": "Indicators change weekly; an empty list never means an email is safe."
  },
  "what_to_do": {
    "if_received": [
      "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"
    ],
    "if_called_or_paid": [],
    "report_links": [
      {
        "label": "Report to the FTC",
        "url": "https://reportfraud.ftc.gov/"
      }
    ]
  },
  "malware_family": null,
  "timeline": [
    {
      "date": "2016-09-08",
      "type": "specimen",
      "title": "Specimen №1: contact-book invites and a forced trial",
      "text": "The guide documented the sign-up flow that harvested contacts and the invite texts.",
      "added": [],
      "removed": [],
      "sources": [
        "https://soft2secure.com/knowledgebase/everalbum"
      ]
    },
    {
      "date": "2026-09-02",
      "type": "registry",
      "title": "Family created",
      "text": "Grew out of the 2016 guide, which is still linked from 30 domains and stays online unchanged.",
      "added": [],
      "removed": [],
      "sources": []
    }
  ],
  "related": [],
  "sources": [
    "https://soft2secure.com/knowledgebase/everalbum"
  ],
  "legacy_urls": [
    "/knowledgebase/everalbum"
  ],
  "legacy_redirect": false,
  "created": "2026-09-02",
  "updated": "2026-09-02",
  "changelog": [
    {
      "date": "2026-09-02",
      "text": "Record created at the registry launch."
    }
  ],
  "url": "https://soft2secure.com/scams/everalbum-text-invites",
  "licence": "CC BY 4.0",
  "generated": "2026-09-03"
}