Is This Email a Scam? How to Check in 30 Seconds

You got an email that looks suspicious. Maybe it says your account is suspended, you won a prize, or someone needs you to verify your identity. Your gut says something is off, but the email looks convincing enough to make you second-guess yourself. Here is how to check if it is a scam - and a free tool that does it for you in seconds.

Quick Check: Paste the Email Into the Scam Checker

BriskTool's Scam Checker analyzes any email text for known phishing patterns, urgency manipulation, suspicious links, and other red flags. Just paste the email content, and the tool scores it on a scale from safe to dangerous with a detailed breakdown of what it found.

The analysis runs entirely in your browser - your email content is not sent anywhere.

The 7 Red Flags of a Scam Email

1. Urgency and Threats

"Your account will be closed in 24 hours." "Immediate action required." "Final warning before legal action." Legitimate companies rarely threaten you over email. Scammers use urgency because it short-circuits your critical thinking - they want you to click before you think.

2. Generic Greetings

"Dear Customer" or "Dear User" instead of your actual name. Your bank knows your name. Amazon knows your name. If an email claims to be from a company you have an account with but does not use your name, that is suspicious.

3. Mismatched Sender Address

The display name says "Apple Support" but the actual email address is something like [email protected]. Always check the full email address, not just the display name. Legitimate companies send from their own domain (apple.com, not apple-something.com).

4. Suspicious Links

Hover over any link before clicking it. If the URL does not match the company it claims to be from, do not click. For example, a link that says "Log in to PayPal" but points to paypal-secure-login.sketchy-domain.com is phishing. The real domain is always the last part before the .com (or .org, .net, etc.).

5. Requests for Sensitive Information

No legitimate company will ask you to email your password, Social Security number, credit card number, or bank account details. If an email asks for this information - no matter how official it looks - it is a scam.

6. Too Good to Be True

"You have won $1,000,000." "You have been selected for a special refund." "Claim your free iPhone." If you did not enter a contest, you did not win one. Unexpected windfalls delivered via email are always scams.

7. Poor Grammar and Spelling

While AI has made scam emails more polished, many still contain awkward phrasing, unusual capitalization, or grammatical errors that a professional company would never send. This is less reliable than it used to be, but still a signal worth noting.

What to Do If You Think an Email Is a Scam

1. Do not click any links - not even to "unsubscribe." Scammers track clicks to confirm your email address is active.
2. Do not reply - replying confirms your address and may invite more scams.
3. Do not download attachments - they may contain malware.
4. Check the claim independently - if the email says your bank account has a problem, go directly to your bank's website (type the URL yourself, do not use the link in the email) or call the number on the back of your card.
5. Report it - forward phishing emails to [email protected] and to the company being impersonated. In Gmail, click the three dots and select "Report phishing."
6. Delete it - once reported, delete the email.

Common Scam Email Types in 2026

Package Delivery Scams

"Your package could not be delivered. Click here to reschedule." These spike during holiday seasons and exploit the fact that most people are expecting deliveries. The link leads to a fake shipping site that asks for your credit card to pay a "redelivery fee."

Account Verification Phishing

"We detected unusual activity on your account. Verify your identity now." These impersonate banks, PayPal, Amazon, Apple, and Microsoft. The linked page looks identical to the real login page but sends your credentials to scammers.

AI-Generated Spear Phishing

The newest and most dangerous type. Scammers use AI to research you on social media and craft personalized emails that reference your real job, colleagues, or recent activities. These are much harder to detect because they feel personal and relevant. When in doubt, verify through a separate channel.

Invoice and Payment Scams

"Please find attached invoice #INV-29481." These target businesses and freelancers. The attachment is either malware or the invoice directs payment to a scammer's account. Always verify unexpected invoices with the sender through a known phone number or email address.

Use the Tool

When you are unsure about an email, paste it into the Scam Checker. It analyzes the text for all the red flags above - urgency language, suspicious phrases, information requests, and known scam patterns - and gives you a clear risk assessment. It takes 30 seconds and could save you from a costly mistake.

All analysis happens in your browser. Your email content stays on your device.