By REBECCA RUTHERFORD
Los Alamos
For the Los Alamos Daily Post
For years, the easiest way to spot a scam was to look for the mistakes. Clumsy grammar, a greeting that got your name wrong, a logo that looked like it was drawn by a toddler. Those days are mostly behind us. Artificial intelligence has handed criminals the tools to write clean emails, clone familiar voices, and build text messages that look like they came straight from your bank.
The tells are subtler now, but they are still there if you know where to look. Here is what is landing in inboxes, voicemails, and text threads this season, and how to keep from taking the bait.
Almost every scam runs on the same engine: pressure. A message warns that your account shows suspicious activity, that a bill is overdue, that a password has been compromised, or that a relative is in trouble and needs help right now. The rush is the point. Scammers want you moving before you have a chance to stop and check. If something demands that you act within minutes, pay immediately, or lose access to an account, slow down. Real urgency almost never arrives with a countdown clock attached, this is always a red flag.
Keep in mind that nobody legitimate asks for your multi-factor authentication codes. Banks, government agencies, and reputable companies do not call, text, or email out of the blue asking for your password, a one-time login code, your card number, or your Social Security number. If a message asks for any of that, treat the request itself as the warning. The safest move is to end the conversation and reach out to the organization yourself, using a phone number or website you look up independently. Never use the number or link the message hands you!
The voice on the phone may not be who you think, either. Voice cloning is one of the fastest- growing tricks in the fraud world, and it is genuinely unsettling. With a short clip of audio, a scammer can produce a recording that sounds like your son, your coworker, or your boss. The classic setup is a panicked call: someone you love is stranded, hurt, or in legal trouble and needs money wired this instant. Even when the voice sounds exactly right, verify through a second channel before you do anything. Hang up and call the person back on their real number.
Agree on a family code word before the scam hits, while things are calm, so you have a quick way to confirm later. This is one of the best ways to stay safe from these scams, so talk to your family today to set this up.
Text-based scams, sometimes called smishing, keep climbing too. The greatest hits include a failed package delivery, an unpaid toll, a frozen bank card, a suspended account, or a surprise tax bill. Each one comes with a link, and each link is built to harvest your login or slip malware onto your phone. Do not tap. If you think there is any chance the notice is real, open the company’s official app or type its web address in yourself and check from there.
And remember that polished does not mean genuine. Because AI writes cleanly, a professional- looking email is no longer proof of anything. The branding can be perfect and the writing flawless. So shift your attention away from grammar and toward the details that are harder to fake: the actual sender address, unexpected attachments, requests to update payment information, and links that point somewhere unfamiliar. Be especially wary of investment pitches, since AI can now fake video endorsements from celebrities and executives promoting opportunities that promise guaranteed returns or risk-free profits. If it sounds too good to be true, it is doing exactly what it was designed to do.
None of this requires you to become a security expert. A handful of basics quietly do most of the work: turn on multi-factor authentication for your important accounts; use a strong, unique password for each service, ideally with a password manager doing the remembering; keep your phone, computer, and apps updated; skim your statements regularly; and avoid handling sensitive business over public Wi-Fi. The single best defense, though, has not changed even as the technology has: verify before you respond. Take the extra minute to confirm the source before you share anything or send a dime. AI has made fraud more convincing, but it has not made patience obsolete.
If you want to go deeper, come join me in person. I will be giving a friendly, plain-language talk on staying safe from AI-powered scams at the Los Alamos Senior Center at 1:30 p.m., Tuesday, July 14. This talk will be targeted to seniors and is open for area seniors to attend. We will walk through what these tricks look like today, the simple habits that stop most of them cold, and how to tell who is really on the other end of that call, text, or email. Bring your questions, bring a neighbor, and know that no tech background is needed. Everyone is welcome.
Stay sharp out there, and I will see you next week!
