Scammers use AI to write flawless, personal emails. Check the request, not the spelling.
For years, the advice was to look for bad spelling and grammar. That no longer works. Scammers now use AI tools to write emails that are polished, personal and in perfect English, often using details from your company website or LinkedIn. The FBI has warned that criminals are using AI to make their scams more convincing.
What still gives it away
- The request: to pay, change bank details, sign in, share a file or buy gift cards
- The pressure: urgent, secret or outside the usual process
- The sender: an address that doesn't match, or an External tag on a “colleague”
- The link: hover over it, and the real address doesn't match
What to do
- Judge the request, not the writing. A perfect email asking for something unusual is still suspicious.
- Check another way, by phone or Teams, using details you already have.
- Report it in Outlook using Report > Report phishing.
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