You would think receiving an unexpected package would be a pleasant surprise. The truth is it's the beginning of a dangerous scam that is already causing big problems for many in Illinois as the feds shared a warning about why this goes so very wrong.

My dad worked for the postal service in Missouri for over 30 years. I ended up hearing a lot about the latest efforts that bad guys were using to try and rip people off, but this is a new one. The United States Postal Service Inspector has shared a warning to Illinois and other states about "brushing scams".

Here's how this goes down. You suddenly receive a package delivery for something you didn't order. There's no return address on the package. Inside is likely an inexpensive item. You didn't pay anything for it and you don't see any charges in your bank account, so no harm done, right? WRONG.

A family in Illinois just received mysterious packages from Temu just days ago as reported by CBS News.

The USPS Inspector General says that what's going on is called "brushing" where individuals find your address online and have an item shipped to you then they post an online review as a "verified buyer".

Once that first item is successfully delivered the USPS says "bad actors are using a person’s address and account information to receive merchandise then steal it from the home before the resident is able to intercept it".

If you've had an unexpected package delivered, you need to act as soon as possible and contact vendors like Amazon to let them know what happened. This scam is so common in Illinois and other states, they have a special brushing portal set up to deal with incidents.

Inside an Illinois Women's Prison Vacant for 12 Years Now Gone

Gallery Credit: Lost Vlog via YouTube

More From KHMO-AM 1070, News-Talk-Sports