Fake Apple SMS about an "automatic charge" on Apple ID links to shortened URL lihi1.me/hAqq9

What happened

Mimikama warned in its WarnRadar on 30 October 2026 about a German-language SMS that pretends to come from Apple. The text reads, in translation: “An automatic charge has been made to your Apple ID account. Please check your invoice:” followed by the link https://lihi1.me/hAqq9. Mimikama calls it fake. The message is not from Apple, and Apple is not involved. The link is a shortened URL from a link-shortening service, not an official Apple domain.

How the scam works

The SMS claims there has been an automatic charge on the recipient's Apple ID and asks them to check an “invoice” through the link. This is a common pressure tactic: an unexpected charge makes people worry and click without thinking. According to Mimikama, the goal is to lure recipients to a fake page in order to obtain data or login information, such as an Apple ID, password or payment details. Mimikama did not report what the page looks like once opened.

Mimikama points to six warning signs: Apple as the claimed sender of an SMS, an unusual warning of an automatic charge, a request to check an invoice through a link, a shortened link instead of the official Apple domain, imprecise and generic wording, and no individual evidence of a real transaction. The advice is not to click the link, not to enter an Apple ID, password or payment details, to open the official Apple app or website yourself and check the account for genuine charges there, and to delete the message and report it as spam if needed.

Source

Mimikama, WarnRadar entry on the fake Apple SMS with the lihi1.me link, 30 October 2026.