NEW analysis has revealed the most popular scams amid a huge rise in fraudsters using fake delivery texts.

The scams attempt to appear as genuine messages from courier companies warning of a shipping fee or package delivery update - most often with a web link attached.

Payments provider Dojo looked at Google searches between February and March to find the most popular scam texts and now the top 10 most prevalent scams can be revealed.

A Hermes scam text was the most popular message used by fraudsters and saw a 633 per cent rise in its usage. The scammers ask potential victims to pay a shipping fee to receive their package, adding that the package will be returned to the sender if it isn't paid.

It is a method seen across a variety of fake company texts - from outstanding tax to threats of "action" if the receiver does not pay.

A Royal Mail scam text came in second place and was closely followed by criminals disguised as the 'DVLA'.

Other popular scam text methods included fraudsters purporting to be from Amazon, DPD, PayPal, Apple, Lloyds, Halifax and Barclays.

The method - known as phishing - can be so deceptive that many people lose bank details and other personal information. North Yorkshire Police has issued advice to the public on how to respond to messages that you cannot verify at first glance. The force urges people to avoid handing out any personal details and, if you receive a request for details from a company that claims to be legitimate, make sure to find a contact number for the organisation you have sourced reputably. People should take care not to click any embedded links as it can provide verification of your active e-mail address. Once this occurs it may facilitate the targeting of further malicious emails. Even 'unsubscribe' links can be malicious. Phishing scams may also contain odd spellings or 'cApitALs' in the subject box in an attempt to get around spam filters.