My phone rejects spam calls for me. The last seven calls on it were all marked “Suspected Spam”.
That is useful. But scammers don’t only ring. They send texts, emails and messages that look real, and a phone cannot always tell the difference.
So in my latest video, I test myself on seven example messages I have never seen. Some are scams and some are real. I have to decide which is which.
Here is what I notice about scam messages. They are rarely clever. They are rushed.
They say things like “act now”, “within 24 hours” or “your account will be restricted”. That is urgency, which means a strong feeling that you must act immediately. It is the scammer’s main tool.
I looked at this from another side in an earlier Influential Me episode, about how confident, charming people influence others. They speak without fear and without too much apology. A scammer uses the same kind of confidence and pressure, but for a different reason. Once you know the tools, you can spot them.
So what do you do? Use three steps, in this order.
1. Pause. Stop for three seconds. Breathe. If a message makes you feel rushed, that feeling is your warning sign.
2. Check. Use a number or a website you already trust, never the one in the message. For example, ring your bank on the number on the back of your card.
3. Choose. Reply, report it or ignore it, when you are ready. Not when the message says you must.
There is an old saying for this: “Better safe than sorry.” It means it is wiser to be careful now than to regret it later.
Try it with the next message that makes you feel rushed. Count to three before you do anything.
This post is general scam awareness, not financial or legal advice.
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