How can I tell if an email is real?

1. The address, not the name

The display name can say anything. Click or tap it to reveal the address and read the domain. A free webmail address for a company, or a domain one character off, is a stop sign.

2. A real address can still carry a fake message

If a friend's or vendor's account has been taken over, the mail comes from their genuine address, and companies' own notification systems have been abused to send phishing. If the request is out of character, call or text the person on a number you already have.

3. Hover before you click

On a computer, hovering shows the real destination at the bottom of the window; on a phone, press and hold. If the link text and the destination disagree, don't click.

4. Never use the link for sensitive accounts

Bank, tax, health, investments: go to the site yourself every time. A real institution doesn't mind.

5. Payment methods that settle it

Gift cards, cryptocurrency or a wire transfer to fix a problem or claim a prize means scam, whoever the sender appears to be.

6. Smaller signals

A generic greeting from a company that knows your name, an unexpected attachment (PDF, Word, zip) even from someone you know, and a design that looks cheaper than usual.

The rule underneath

Verify through a separate channel, using contact details you already have. A genuine message survives that; a fake one doesn't.

Haven's role

In Gmail, Outlook and Yahoo Mail on the web, Haven can put a banner on an email: red when the sender uses a teammate's name with a different address, or uses high-pressure scam language; amber when the email has risky or suspicious links; green when the sender is a member of your Haven plan.