The Anatomy of a Scam – Six Ways to Spot One Without Breaking a Sweat

 

If you’re like me, you receive tons of emails a day. And no matter how sharp your spam filter, a few suspicious messages always slip through. Some are obvious nonsense. Others wear just enough polish to make you pause.

These are six things I’ve started looking for whenever something sketchy lands in my inbox.

1. Fake Names, Fake Titles
When a ‘legal’ notice is signed by someone using a clearly generic or placeholder name—like “John Doe, Esq.”—and claiming to be the CEO of a law firm, it raises immediate doubts. If nothing else, an implausible name is often the fastest way to spot a fake threat.

2. A Free Email Account
In my case, the message came from a suspicious-looking Gmail account. No real law firm sends official notices from a free mail account. That alone is enough to stop reading.

3. Vague Legal Claims
No mention of what the trademark was. No reference to the supposedly offending product. Just sweeping language about “unauthorized use.” Real legal notices are precise. Scams rely on vagueness. That’s not legal action—it’s bait.

4. Urgency Without Authority
Scammers love a deadline. “Reply in 72 hours” is meant to rattle you. Real firms follow procedure. Scams push panic. Deadlines without due process are pressure plays, not legal protocol.

5. Dubious PDF Attachments
Anything claiming evidence proving the violation is more likely to infect your device than prove a point. Do not click. Do not download. Do not engage. It’s safest to assume that anything sent by an unknown free address and named like that is not evidence but malware.

6. The Frankenstein Firm
Some scams mash together real law firm names to sound more legit. It’s a name that doesn’t exist—though parts of it do just enough to lend weight to the bluff.

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A Final Word (With a nod and an apology to Miss Austen)
One must exercise reason when encountering nonsense dressed in formal attire. If a message appears urgent yet is unsigned and unverified, treat it as you would any uninvited guest at a ball: with polite disregard and firm dismissal. And for those among us with more modern sensibilities, mark it as spam and relegate it to the trash bin of one’s life.

Note: I’m a historical romance writer, not a lawyer—just someone tired of sketchy messages dressed up as legal threats cluttering my inbox. This post is based on personal experience and should not be considered legal advice.