Know a scam when you see one

How today's scams actually work, what gives them away, and exactly what to do when one lands — in plain language, for anyone.

Here's the story that started this page. A man who works in IT for a living — a professional, someone who knows better — got a call at work from his bank. The caller ID said it was his bank. The caller knew the last four digits of his credit card. He was busy and distracted. They asked for his PIN and the security code on the back, then emailed him to confirm. Only then did something feel wrong. He drove to the branch and cancelled the card.

He got out of it. But notice what didn't save him: knowing about scams. What nearly got him was being busy, plus two things that felt like proof and weren't.

If you remember one thing

Hang up. Then call back on a number you already had — the one on the back of your card.

Not the number that called you. Not a number in the message. A real bank, a real government office, and a real company will all be perfectly happy to wait for you to do this. A scammer cannot survive it.

⚠️ Two things that feel like proof and aren't Caller ID. Anyone can make any name or number appear on your screen. It costs nothing and takes seconds. Caller ID is a suggestion, not identification.
"They knew my details." Your last four digits, your address, your birthday, even a recent purchase — that information has leaked from company data breaches for years and is bought and sold cheaply. Knowing it proves nothing at all.

Nobody is too smart for this. The scams are written by people who do it full-time, and they are designed for the moment you're distracted — at work, in the car, cooking dinner. Having a rule you follow without thinking beats being clever every time.

New to AI and want it to help you check things? Our companion Getting Started with AI guide walks through the basics first.