Is This Email a Scam?

Email scams use social engineering tactics to trick you into clicking links that lead to malware or downloading attachments that contain viruses. Often, cybercriminals will also try to steal your personal information through these attacks. The best way to protect yourself is to follow these simple rules:

Never trust an unsolicited is this email a scam , especially if it asks you to provide account details or login credentials. Legitimate companies will never ask for these details via email and will always use a secure website.

If you’re not sure, open a new tab in your browser and visit the company’s official website to see if their contact info matches up. If the site address is different or the URL has a misspelling in it, this is a good indication that the message is not legitimate.

Scammers are getting better at presenting their emails to look less dodgy, so be vigilant and check out these other tell-tale signs:

Stay Alert: How to Identify Scammer Emails and Protect Yourself from Online Fraud

Scammers will sometimes try to disguise their identity by using a fake name and email address in the “from” field. However, most of the time you’ll be able to spot their impersonation through poor spelling and grammar.

Scammers will often include an extremely valuable offer, or try to scare you into clicking the link by saying something like “your account is under threat” or that the offer expires soon. If you’re not convinced, check out the email on a different device or computer to make sure it really is from your bank, software provider, or other company.