Experts are issuing warnings about three scam text messages that could drain your bank account following an incident where an elderly man was defrauded just weeks before his death. Online fraud has cost victims hundreds of billions globally over the past year, whilst more than half of adults reported being targeted within the last 12 months.

Cybersecurity company NordVPN stated that scam texts have become so sophisticated that poor spelling and glaring errors are no longer dependable indicators that something is fraudulent. Instead, cybersecurity specialists say there are now three key warning signs Brits must look out for in messages purporting to be from banks, courier companies or official organisations like HMRC.

The first is urgency. Texts suggesting your account will be suspended, a payment will bounce, or a package will be sent back unless you respond immediately are crafted to panic people into making hasty decisions.

The second is an unexpected link or phone number. If a message instructs you to click a link or ring a number you weren’t anticipating, experts say alarm bells should ring, particularly if it purports to be from your bank, Royal Mail, Evri, DPD or a government department.

The third is fear. Scammers frequently attempt to frighten people into responding by warning of suspicious account activity, missed legal obligations or a security issue that requires immediate attention.

Marijus Briedis, chief technology officer at NordVPN, warned: “Scam texts might have been obvious once upon a time, but that’s not the case anymore. They can be highly sophisticated and very convincing at first glance, especially to the untrained eye or when you don’t receive them often.

“What usually gives them away is not bad spelling or strange formatting. It’s the pressure. The message wants you to do something quickly, before you’ve had time to stop and think.

“They also tend to play on emotion. The message is written to make you worry that money has left your account, you’ve missed a payment, or something has gone wrong with a delivery.”

He strongly advised against clicking links, dialling numbers in texts or allowing oneself to be hurried, adding that any genuine issue can be verified through a company’s official website or app. NordVPN has introduced a complimentary scam checker tool enabling users to input a suspicious text or upload a screenshot to determine whether it may be fraudulent.

The firm stated that the service could scrutinise plain text and image files and cross-reference links, email addresses and phone numbers against recognised malicious databases. This development follows a woman revealing that her father-in-law was duped into making a payment after scammers targeted him shortly before his passing. The fraud only emerged when family members reviewed his documents.

Debbie Porter, managing director at Destination Digital Marketing, said: “My father-in-law was scammed a few weeks before he died and, being elderly, he was trusting. In going through his papers, we discovered a payment from his bank account that led to its discovery. The bank took no responsibility for this fraudulent payout because he had consented to the payment, which is the path the scammers are trying to lead you down.”

Debbie explained that identifying the warning signs of fraud represented the initial step towards preventing others experiencing the same ordeal as her father-in-law.

She added: “Almost all urgent ‘pay now’ messages should be treated with a high degree of vigilance. If it comes from a business you have purchased from, then independently researching the company’s telephone number and calling them directly rather than from the text is a best practice every single time. This new scam checker tool from NordVPN is a great idea if it helps people avoid the trap my elderly father-in-law fell into.”

This emerges against mounting concerns regarding artificial intelligence’s involvement in digital fraud, with specialists cautioning that criminals can now produce increasingly persuasive messages on a massive scale.

Dil Gujral, chief AI trainer at AI Now Academy, said: “If you think scam texts are bad, wait till they start using AI to impersonate family members for extortion.”

Rohit Parmar-Mistry, founder of Burton-on-Trent-based Pattrn Data, explained that fraudulent messages are now meticulously crafted to resemble routine service notifications. He stated: “Advice like this matters because scam texts now look and feel like real service messages. The language is polished, the sender name can be spoofed, and the story is designed to get you to act before you think. Urgency plus a link is the classic trap.

“My simple rule is: do not interact with the message. Do not tap the link, do not reply, and do not call the number in the text. Instead, go to the organisation via a channel you already trust.”

He suggested that people should also activate spam filtering, keep their phone and banking apps updated, set up account alerts and utilise two-factor authentication where feasible. However, not everyone concurs that the responsibility should solely rest on the public.

Colette Mason, author and AI consultant at Clever Clogs AI in London, expressed that scam texts were increasingly an “infrastructure problem” rather than merely one of personal awareness.

She said: “The person who falls for one isn’t careless. They’re a parent distracted at school pickup, or someone genuinely worried about a missed delivery. Until the infrastructure changes, ‘look out for urgency and dodgy links’ is a sticking plaster on a structural wound.”