Cybersecurity solutions company Norton introduced Norton Genie, a free real-time AI-powered scam detector available for iPhone and PC, and it lets you know if texts, emails, websites and social media posts are a scam.
The new scam detection tool uses Norton cybersecurity data and AI that’s “trained on millions of scam messages” to identify scam messages, emails, links or posts received online. It aims to make it easier for users to spot scams, phishing attacks and fake websites.
What is Norton Genie?
Currently in early access, Norton Genie detects scams through a database of known fraudulent messages and flags anything that looks suspicious. Users can upload a screenshot or copy and paste a message to the app to see if a text or website is a scam.
As Norton states, the more people use Genie, the smarter it gets. As more users add potential scam messages to the detection tool, the AI learns and adapts from these and can notify other users if they receive similar messages or links to dodgy websites.
“Genie is an always-on, easy-to-use, trusted advisor that helps you stay ahead of highly convincing scams,” says Ondrej Vlcek, President at global software company Gen. “By bringing together best-in-class scam intel from Norton with advanced AI, we can empower people to take full advantage of the digital world safely, privately and confidently.”
Scam messages and phishing emails are on the rise, with people have to wade through a claimed 3.4 billion phishing emails on a daily basis, Norton notes. Not to mention those nasty BNZ fake text scams.
The best antivirus software, such as Norton 360 Platinum, can also detect scam messages and fake websites. Still, Norton Genie’s AI detection aims to continue to grow, and it will also answer follow-up questions like “How did it know the message was a scam?” or “What should you do next?”
Norton Genie is currently available in New Zealand, Australia, Ireland and the United States and can be downloaded on the Apple App Store or through Norton’s official website. Currently, it is compatible with iOS 14.0 or greater, Chrome, Safari, Microsoft Edge and Firefox.
It’s completely free to use, and if you keep getting suspicious texts or emails, it’s worth giving Norton Genie a go. It’s set to be generally available in global markets and on Android later this year.
What is Phishing?
Phishing is a form of cybercrime where attackers will trick unsuspecting victims into sending sensitive information or installing malware on their devices. It involves contacting victims via email, text message or telephone and posing as a legitimate company or individual seeking information to benefit the victim. Malicious actors will use social engineering techniques to convince unsuspecting victims they are real.
If you received an email that looks suspicious, you aren’t alone. Scammers often send millions of phishing emails, thousands at a time, to trick recipients, with malicious messages being sent to email addresses found through social profiles or via data breaches. These email scams are widespread, meaning attackers cast a wide net to see how much they can reel in.
Phishing attacks commonly use links in messages to dodgy websites or PDF attachments with malware to quickly gain unauthorised access to user accounts or steal valuable information.
Hackers will also resort to installing malicious software, including spyware, ransomware, adware and more, onto a victim’s device to cause more damage.
With phishing scams on the rise, it’s best to use proper protection to fend off any suspicious messages you receive.