of them. >> i knew i couldn't be that lucky. >> reporter: the ftc is cracking down, charging 29 individuals and companies from around the u.s. with sending more than 180 million unwanted text messages. first, spam text messages are illegal. and they say these so-called gift cards are anything but free. if you actually click on the link you have to keep putting in more and more personal information. >> there are 13 different offers they're required to complete, supposedly to just receive the gift card. the offers they're presented with include offers to apply for credit, offers to sign up for a free trial offer for various products. at the end of the day after they complete all the 13 steps they're oftentimes then presented with something that says now, find three more people who will fill out this information. >> reporter: according to a study, 60% of consumers say they received a spam message in the last year. blocking the text message is not