A scam is taking off nationwide and this one comes in the form of a threatening text message.
Police said scammers are now posing as hit men to get your personal information
"They’re obviously doing it to try to get money and swindle people out of their money," Action News Jax crime and safety expert Ken Jefferson said.
Jefferson said hackers are doing it to try to get your personal information.
And police across the country are warning people about scammers posing as hit men.
"I would disregard the text altogether cause it's a scam and I don't believe a lot of stuff like that," Jacksonville resident, Chris Warren said.
The threat comes in as a text and could say something like, “I’ve been paid to kill you, but wish to spare you. If you inform the police or anyone else you will die.”
"It's surprising to hear something like that is going on," Jacksonville resident, Justin Miller said.
Jefferson said if you get one of the texts you should call the police.
"Give them all the information and let their cyber unit investigate to see if it's being computer generated or if there's a calling list," Jefferson said.
The text also includes an email address to contact immediately, but if you click on the link it copies your contacts and sends then the same message.
"Anytime someone sends you something and says to click on a link they are ready to hack your account and they can use it against you,” Jefferson said.
And Jefferson said scammers usually target a certain age group.
"They prey on the elderly people who are very vulnerable, and giving if you will,” Jefferson said.
Action News Jax reached out to local agencies to see if there have been any reports of this scam in our area.