Training quiz
Spot the Scam
Ten realistic messages — some are scams, some are perfectly normal. Decide for each one, and learn the tells as you go. Nothing you answer is stored or sent anywhere.
You receive this email:
Scam. You can't win a lottery you never entered, and real winnings never require a fee to "release" them — that's the advance-fee pattern, and the fees keep coming. Anyone asking you to pay in order to get paid is a scammer.
A caller says he's with your bank's internal security team:
Scam. Banks never recruit customers for investigations, never ask you to withdraw cash, and never ask you to keep secrets from their own staff. The secrecy demand exists so the tellers — who would recognize the scam instantly — never get the chance. Hang up and call the number on your card.
You receive this text from your bank's short code:
Legitimate. It asks only YES or NO, contains no link, and directs you to the number printed on your own card — the one channel a scammer can't control. A fake version would push a link or a callback number it chose for you.
Two weeks ago you applied for a marketing job at a local firm. This email arrives:
Legitimate. It references a specific job you actually applied for, at a company you contacted first, and asks only for your availability — no fees, no personal data, no payment for "equipment." Real hiring never charges the candidate.
While browsing, a full-screen popup appears with a loud alarm sound:
Scam. Real antivirus warnings never include a phone number — that line connects to a fake "technician" who will charge you and install remote-access software. Close the browser (Ctrl+Alt+Del if needed); the alarming page is just a web ad.
Your building manager sends this email to all residents:
Legitimate. A dated, specific notice sent to everyone, asking for nothing — no payment, no link, no personal details, not even access to your unit. Building notices become suspicious when they request e-transfers for "urgent repairs" or codes to your door.
You're selling a bike for $300 on Marketplace. The buyer messages:
Scam. The overpayment is fake or made from a stolen account — your "refund" is real money that's gone forever once the original transfer reverses. Anyone who overpays and asks for the difference back is running a script. Cancel and block.
An alarming email lands in your inbox, claiming to be from a hacker:
Scam. This is a mass-sent bluff — there is no video. The script sometimes includes an old password from a data breach to look credible. Don't pay and don't reply; change reused passwords and report it to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre.
After three weeks of daily chats, your new online connection messages:
Scam. This is the long-game romance-investment script: weeks of warmth first, then a "family" trading platform. The relationship is the product; the platform is fake, and withdrawals will require endless fees. Love talk that steers toward investing is the signature.
You receive this text from a number you don't know:
Scam. No legitimate employer hires by cold text, and "which resume, for what job?" has no answer. The too-good pay and zero requirements are the lure; replying YES marks your number as live and leads to "training fees" or money-mule tasks.
Your result
Scam-spotter! You read messages the way a security analyst does — checking who's asking, what they want, and how hard they're pushing. Keep trusting that process.
Sharp eyes. You catch most tricks — the ones that slip through tend to be the calm, patient ones. When in doubt, verify through a channel you already trust.
Getting there. You spot the obvious pressure tactics; the lookalike domains and "helpful" phone numbers are what to practice. The guides below make those second nature.
Scammers would love you — for now. The good news: the patterns repeat, and twenty minutes with the guides below genuinely changes the odds.