10 Common Email Scams You Need to Know About

Cindy Ellis - October 10, 2022

Email scams are one of the oldest forms of online scamming and have been around since the creation of the internet. In today’s world, scammers are getting better than ever at crafting these emails to trick unsuspecting individuals into giving up their personal information or installing malware on their computers and phones.

Our article helps you identify the most common email scams out there, so you know what to look out for, saving you from accidentally falling victim to an email scam attempt.

The Profitability of Email Scams

You may not know it, but email scams are actually one of the most lucrative forms of scamming. As of 2018, email scams reportedly stole $300 million each month in the US from victims. These numbers are only increasing as scammers get craftier and the technology or wording used for drafting scam emails becomes more advanced.

It’s important to stay aware and alert when receiving emails to either your personal or business accounts if you want to avoid accidentally falling for one of these scams.

10 Common Email Scams

Below, we discuss the ten most common email scams that you might encounter via your personal or business email accounts. Staying aware of the possibilities helps you avoid further issues with these emails.

1. Family Emergency Scams

A particularly upsetting type of email scam is the family emergency scam. In this email, the scammer will claim that one of your family members has been involved in an accident or legal issues, eventually demanding money for hospital bills, legal fees, or bail.

Many unsuspecting individuals will pay immediately, wanting their family members to be safe. However, sending money is the worst thing you can do. If you receive one of these emails, contact your family members directly to check on their condition and proceed from there.

2. Survey Scams

While some companies do provide prizes or compensation for filling out surveys, emails that promise huge payouts for very little work or surveys that require lots of your personal information to get started are typically scams. Generally, companies that pay for survey completion will have proper procedures in place for collecting information and providing payments.

Most legitimate companies will not directly ask for direct deposit information, social security numbers, or other highly personal information that isn’t relevant to the survey.

3. Government Alert Scams

Government alert scams are emails that are designed to appear like they are from a government agency such as the IRS or FBI. The email will detail some type of threat, such as missed payments, debts, or fines that haven’t been paid. They will threaten serious jail time or other consequences if you don’t verify your personal information or pay the “agency.”

However, this is not the case; the IRS and FBI will never initiate contact through email. If you click any links provided in the email or answer the email with your personal information, you run the risk of scammers obtaining these details and committing identity theft or other fraudulent crimes.

4. Mystery Shopper Scams

Mystery shopper scams are not new, but email is one of the newer formats in which this scam is seen. For this scam to work, the email attempts to get you to sign up for a mystery shopper program with a major retail chain or restaurant. After this, you will be asked to make a purchase at the chain in exchange for a refund. However, these purchases are typically gift cards that you will then be asked to mail to the scammers, and because the actual store isn’t involved, you won’t be refunded.

Be very wary about receiving mystery shopper propositions. Never mail gift cards or other items with the promise of a refund via email, as it is very likely a scam.

5. Work From Home Scams

Work-from-home scam emails are some of the most predatory as they often rely on the desperation of individuals who can’t obtain work out of the home for whatever reason.

The email will attempt to get you to sign up for remote work by clicking on a link, and these links often install malware on the victim’s computer or phone. The email may also request personal information, claiming it’s so you can be paid for your work, but this is simply a tactic to receive sensitive financial information.

6. Contest or Lottery Scams

An email stating you won a contest or lottery is often a scam, especially if it is for a contest or lottery that you weren’t even aware you entered. These emails will often ask you to send over your information or pay taxes to collect your winnings.

Remember that you should never have to pay money to retrieve a legitimate prize or winnings.

7. Identity Verification Scams

Emails that are part of identity verification scams depend on the popularity of social media accounts and other websites in today’s world. These emails appear to be from legitimate websites, like Facebook, Microsoft, Amazon, or Apple. They will ask you to verify your identity, update your billing information, secure your account, or double-check your security information.

However, the link provided will often direct to a fraudulent website that attempts to collect personal information, login information for online accounts or installs malware.

8. Billing or Financial Scams

Billing and financial scams involve emails that appear to be from banks, insurance agencies, or loan companies and detail a missed payment, a potential refund, or billing statement changes. Unfortunately, once you click the link provided in the email or reply to the email with your personal information, you have fallen victim to the scam and are at risk for identity theft or other types of fraud.

If you have accidentally fallen for this scam, you should contact your financial institution directly to initiate fraud protocols, update your information and change your passwords.

9. Virus or Malware Scams

Virus or malware scams involve the scammer sending an email claiming that your computer or software has been hacked or is infected with a virus. The scammers will claim that personal information is needed or that payment is required to unlock the computer. The email may also attempt to get you to provide remote access to your computer or another device to fix the issues, which gives the scammer control to install malware, continue their threats, and demand money to return the control of the device.

10. Nigerian Prince Scams

One of the oldest and most well-known scams is the Nigerian prince scam. In this email, the scammer will claim that they are a celebrity, a figure of royalty (a Nigerian prince was the most common figure used before this scam became widely recognized), or a long-lost relative. They will claim that they have a large amount of money they need help accessing, and if you help, they’ll send you a cut of it. They’ll detail that all you need to do is send them a specific amount of money to cover the fees.

However, the scammer will likely keep demanding more once you send the money. Therefore, never send money to unknown individuals and always be wary about situations that seem too good to be true.

Avoiding an Email Scam: What to Look Out For

Email scams are one of the most prevalent forms of scamming today, in addition to dating and phone scams, and plenty of variations are available that are designed to steal your personal information or gain access to your finances. Keep a look out for the items below that indicate an email is a scam and should be avoided.

• Emails that ask for money, or offer deals such as payments in exchange for gift cards or other items, or ask for highly personal information such as bank information, social security numbers, and account login information should all be treated with caution.
• Emails that claim to be urgent or from government agencies should always be treated with caution. Contact the government agency in question directly if you have concerns, and don’t be swayed by any threats that may appear in emails, as threats are often signs of a scammer trying to frighten you.
• Emails with sketchy-looking links, poor grammar, and misspellings, ones that offer unexpected prize money, or ones that attempt to collect your personal information are all likely scams and should be treated with caution. Never click on an email link when you can’t verify the sender of the email.

Another great way to avoid email scams is to double-check the sender using an email lookup tool or a simple internet search. These options can tell you if the sender is a scammer and let you know when to block and move on from the email, saving you stress and unpleasant situations.

Protect Yourself From Email Scams

Always remember to use caution when receiving emails from unknown senders. Don’t be confused by threats, frightening messages, urgent statements, or the promise of unexpected money, as these are the most common themes in email scams.