AI Text Scams

AI-generated text scams are messages written or assisted by software that mimics natural, polished conversation. They borrow real names, familiar phrasing, and clean formatting to feel legitimate while steering you toward quick actions. The goal is speed: tap a link, share a code, or answer before you think. The previous text was written with AI. Did you catch it?

AI text scams honestly are not that big of a concern right now, but definitely exist. Our main concern is the rapid growth and use of AI, and how that can be leveraged into the "scam" industry. A classic example is the "your package could not be delivered. Update your address now: example.link/verify." The message looks tidy, the link looks ordinary, and everything seems normal about it, but it's one of the simplest AI scams out there.

We always try to emphasize the importance of remaining calm, taking a pause, and letting panic drop before making decisions. We teach simple habits like reading the full link and using Google to your advantage, and we even teach about scam-detection sites that can tell if a website is a scam. These same habits are easy to teach in our community of older adults, where calm practice not only helps with scam recognition but also builds confidence.

We like to stay somewhat creative but remain serious because we know this can be a sensitive topic for people who may have been scammed before. We teach to always take time: we always say that if you get a text from an unknown number that says a lot of absolutes and encourages instant action, ignore what it may be saying and listen to logic, which says to step back and consider. Another aspect is to consider who is texting vs who they claim to be, we teach them to check the number or email that the scam is using and check the number who they claim to be; if they don't match it's a scam. We end on the note that while AI is only improving and getting better, the simple step of taking a minute to think can turn a seemingly stressful situation into an easily recognizable scam.

Identifying AI scams in messages is only one of three main AI-based scams we cover, and as AI continues to grow and evolve at a marvelous rate, who knows what scams may emerge in the future? Either way, there's always something AI can never mimic: human ingenuity.