From Phishing Emails to Fake Online Shops
An email arrives saying that your parcel cannot be delivered until you confirm your payment details. A message from your bank asks you to log in through a link. An online shop offers a product you have been looking for at half the usual price.
Is it genuine – or a scam?
Online fraud is becoming increasingly sophisticated, and artificial intelligence adds another dimension to the problem. AI can be used to create convincing fraudulent emails, images, advertisements and websites.
But AI can also become a useful assistant when something online does not look quite right.
Does this message look suspicious?
Imagine receiving an email that appears to come from a delivery company.
Instead of immediately clicking on the link, you can stop and examine the message. AI can help identify warning signs such as unusual wording, urgency, unexpected requests for payment or attempts to obtain personal information.
For example, you could ask:
Try asking AI:
“I received a message claiming that I need to pay an additional delivery fee. What warning signs should I look for to determine whether it might be phishing?”
Notice that you do not need to provide your name, address, account number or other personal details. AI can explain common indicators of phishing and help you think about the message more critically.
But it should be an additional check – not the final authority.
If the message claims to be from your bank, delivery company or another organisation, the safest option is to visit the organisation’s official website independently rather than following the link in the message.
What about a suspicious online shop?
AI can also help you create a checklist for evaluating an unfamiliar online store.
You might ask:
Try asking AI:
“What should I check before buying something from an online shop I have never used before?”
A useful checklist might include examining contact information, return conditions, independent reviews, payment methods, unusually low prices and the overall credibility of the website.
You can then verify these points yourself.
Before you buy, check:
- Contact details and company information
- Return and refund conditions
- Independent customer reviews
- Available payment methods
- Prices that seem unusually low
- The overall credibility of the website
This distinction is important: AI can tell you what to investigate, but it cannot guarantee that a website is safe.
AI is helpful – but it can also be wrong
Generative AI tools sometimes produce inaccurate information. They may misunderstand the situation or confidently give an answer that is incorrect. This is why digital safety requires both technological skills and critical thinking.
When the consequences matter – for example when money, personal data or account access are involved – important information should always be verified through reliable sources.
Use AI to help you ask better questions, not to replace verification.
Never share sensitive information unnecessarily
There is another safety principle that is easy to remember.
When asking AI for help, do not paste passwords, payment-card information, banking details, identification numbers, confidential documents or other sensitive personal information into a chatbot.
- Passwords
- Payment card details
- Banking information
- Identification numbers
- Confidential documents
- Other sensitive personal information
Usually, AI does not need these details to help you understand the problem. You can describe the situation anonymously instead.
Rather than copying an entire bank message including your personal data, for example, simply ask what the typical signs of a fraudulent banking message are.
Digital confidence means knowing when to stop
FutureForward explores digital safety as one of the practical areas in which adults can develop their AI and digital skills.
And perhaps one of the most valuable skills is surprisingly simple: pause before you click.
Artificial intelligence can help us understand suspicious messages, identify questions we should ask and learn about common online risks.
But staying safe online still depends on human judgement.
Stop. Check. Verify.
And if something looks suspicious, do not let urgency make the decision for you.
