Even back in 2008, Americans sent more text messages than they made mobile phone calls.

Now, scammers are finally catching up.

The latest twist on the “pay your bill” scam has the would-be criminals sending a text message warning that a payment is due immediately.

“In this instance, PayXchange is a legitimate business, but not one that offers automated payments from an existing checking account,” said Alabama Power spokesman Ike Pigott. “That reference number could belong to anyone, even overseas, and like the other payment scams, once the money is transferred it is almost impossible to trace.”

Alabama Power officials say the company will never call and ask for a customer for bank information or a credit card number.

The company encourages customers who have questions about the status of their Alabama Power account to call Alabama Power Customer Service day or night, seven days a week, at 1-800-245-2244.