Unmasking Deception: How a Literary Scam Nearly Fooled Me – A Harrowing Inbox Encounter
The easy one!
If they ask for money, it’s a scam. It’s as simple as that.
Hover over the sender’s email address.
Examine the ‘From’ email address. Look for misspellings, added characters, or slight variations in the domain name. A businessperson writing from a generic email account is a major red flag. Other links in the email may reveal suspicious URLs.
Do your due diligence!
Scammers posing as literary agents are getting better at disguising themselves (also known as email spoofing). In these cases, the old adage When it looks too good to be true, it probably is still applies. Out-of-the-blue solicitations from agents are almost always fraudulent. However, with the explosion of AI, these scams have become more sophisticated and difficult to spot. Verify the sender’s credentials by searching industry databases and visit the agency’s official website. Go beyond that! Contact the real company through its website, and ask them if the solicitation you received is real.
