15
Lesson 15 · 2 min
Spot AI-powered scams
Scammers now use AI to write perfect messages, so good grammar is no longer a sign that a message is real.
Old scam emails were full of spelling mistakes. Now AI writes clean, friendly, personal messages in any language, at huge scale.
Common tricks: a fake delivery text with a link, a bank warning asking you to log in, a job offer that pays too well, or a message from your boss asking you to buy gift cards. This is called phishing.
Look for the pressure, not the grammar. Urgency ("in 30 minutes"), secrecy ("don't tell anyone"), and unusual payment (gift cards, crypto, a new bank account) are the real red flags.
Never use the link or number in the message. Open the official app or call a number you already know. Try it below: real or scam?
Scam or legit?
Read each message as if it just arrived on your phone. Decide, then see the red flags.
Text message+44 7700 900412
Your parcel is on hold: unpaid customs fee of $1.99. Pay within 24 hours or it will be returned: parcel-redelivery-help.com
Do it now
Check a suspicious message
- 1.Find a message that felt slightly off, or use a recent spam text.
- 2.Remove your personal details, then paste it with the prompt below.
- 3.Whatever the AI says, verify through the official app or website, never the link.
Here is a message I received: [PASTE, WITH MY DETAILS REMOVED]. List any warning signs of a scam, explain each in one line, and tell me how to check if it is real without clicking anything.
Words from this lesson
- Phishing
- Fake messages that pretend to be someone you trust to trick you into clicking a link, paying or sharing passwords.
- Voice cloning
- Using AI to copy someone's voice from a short recording so it can say anything. Common in phone scams.
- Deepfake
- A fake video, photo or audio clip made with AI to show a real person saying or doing something they never did.
- AI literacy
- Knowing enough about how AI works to use it well, spot its mistakes and decide when not to use it.