AI Scams to Watch Out For

By Pip, your lighthouse keeper · 2026-05-23 · 2 min read

The clumsy scam email full of typos is going extinct, and that's not good news. It's Pip here, and I'll be honest with you: AI has handed scammers a polish they never used to have. The reassuring part is that the warning signs underneath haven't changed a bit, and once you know them, you're in great shape.

A locksmith who can copy any key

Think of a dishonest locksmith who can suddenly copy any key in seconds. The locks on your doors are exactly as strong as they ever were; what changed is how fast and cheaply a thief can cut a key that fits. AI is that tool for scammers, letting them write flawless, personalized messages and even mimic familiar voices, in huge numbers, for almost nothing. So your defense isn't a fancier lock. It's noticing when someone's at the door.

Here are the ones I see most. The grandparent call: a cloned voice of a relative claiming they're in trouble and need money fast. The perfect phishing email: no more clumsy spelling, just a polished note "from your bank" with a link that leads somewhere fake. The friendly chatbot romance or "investment helper" that's warm for weeks, then asks for money. And too-good ads using a fake video of a celebrity "endorsing" a product or a get-rich scheme.

The thread tying every one of these together is the same: urgency plus a request for money, passwords, or gift cards. So make this your rule, and it's a strong one: any time a message rushes you or asks for those, stop. Don't trust the phone number or link they handed you; reach the bank, the company, or your family member through a number you already have. A real bank will never mind you hanging up to call back and confirm. That single pause defeats nearly all of these. There's a calm, scam-proof instinct that comes from knowing the whole playbook, and I'd be glad to walk you through it.