Fake "KOP-United" iPhone 18 prize SMS tells recipients to call 0800 8800 654

What happened

Mimikama warned in its WarnRadar on 30 October 2026 about an SMS sent under the sender name “KOP-United”. The German-language message reads: “Congratulations! Call now: 0800 8800 654, Code: K21751241. Your prize from the iPhone 18 giveaway is waiting.” A line added by the phone says the sender cannot receive replies and tells the user to contact the company directly. Mimikama calls the message fake. The number and code are those the scammers ask recipients to use; they are not a contact point of any real prize draw.

How the scam works

The message claims the recipient has won a prize in an “iPhone 18” competition. Instead of a link it asks the recipient to phone a free-looking 0800 number and quote a code. Mimikama says the goal is to bait people into calling, and then possibly to lead them to hand over further data or to incur costs. It did not report what happens on the call. Mimikama's editors add that a similar SMS with the same 0800 number has been seen offering an e-bike, which suggests the sender swaps the prize but keeps the number.

Mimikama gives six reasons it is fake: an unrealistic prize promise for a phone model, the instruction to call a number, a specific code to build pressure, no way to reply, the unusual sender name KOP-United, and a standard note to contact the sender directly that does not fit a genuine prize notice. Its advice is not to call the number, not to give out personal data or codes, to check any supposed competition only on the official website of the named company, to delete the message and block the sender, and to tell your bank or mobile provider if you have already responded.

Source

Mimikama, WarnRadar entry on the fake “KOP-United” iPhone 18 prize SMS, 30 October 2026.