The scam that reads like a real email
For years the advice was simple: watch for bad spelling and awkward phrasing. That warning sign is going away. Here is what to look for instead, plus three scams worth knowing about this month.
Why perfect spelling no longer means a message is real
A message full of typos used to be a reliable clue that something was off. Many scam emails were written by people working in a second language, and it showed.
The FBI has warned that criminals now use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to write and translate their messages, which removes the spelling and grammar mistakes people were taught to look for. These messages arrive professionally worded and sometimes personalized: your name in the greeting, your bank's logo in the header, a tone that sounds exactly like a company you already deal with.
The result is that you can no longer judge a message by how well it is written. A clean, polite, well-formatted email can still be a scam.
Three scams to watch this month
- Fake charity requests are starting now. AARP's Fraud Watch Network warns that fraudulent charity appeals rise every year as the holiday giving season approaches. Before donating to any charity that contacts you by email or text, look it up yourself at charitynavigator.org or give.org, and give through the charity's own website typed in by hand, never through a link in the message.
- Fake toll and delivery texts. The FBI has warned about texts claiming you owe a small unpaid toll, and look-alike delivery texts claim a package is stuck. The real USPS, E-ZPass, and FedEx do not ask you to pay through a link in a text. Delete the message and check your account or delivery directly on the official website.
- Fraudulent ads in Medicare and insurance search results. The FTC warns that during open enrollment, scammers and dishonest businesses sometimes pay to appear at the top of search results. Medicare's open enrollment runs October 15 to December 7. If you or a family member is reviewing plans, go directly to medicare.gov or call 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) rather than clicking a search result labeled "Ad" or "Sponsored."
What to do
- Judge the request, not the writing. A well-written message is not proof of anything. What matters is whether it asks you to act quickly, pay, sign in, or share information.
- Take the 60-second step. Before responding to any message that asks you to act, look up the organization's phone number somewhere you already have it: your bill, the back of your card, or the official website typed in by hand. Call that number instead. That single habit closes the most common door scammers use.
- Never pay or sign in from a link in a text. Tolls, packages, and accounts can all be checked by going to the company's website yourself.
- Check a charity before you give. Look it up independently, then donate through its own website.
- Talk about it with your family. Share this with a parent or grandparent who may still be watching for spelling mistakes as the main warning sign.
Related reading
- Protecting an older parent from scams: a practical guide for families on the habits and settings that matter most.
- How to report a suspicious email: what to do with a message you are not sure about, and how to preserve it.
- The Scam Library: plain-English entries on the charity, toll-text, and impersonation scams covered here.
This week on Scam Watch we also covered a pattern showing up in churches and small offices: a short, urgent email that appears to come from a pastor or senior leader, asking someone to buy gift cards. Read the one call that stops it.
Polished scams are exactly what we watch for.
Family Sentinel watches the inboxes of the people you love and looks past the wording to what a message is really asking for: the payment request, the sign-in link, the urgency. When something is wrong, you hear about it in plain English.
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