The three keywords that reveal suspicious text message is a scam

Receiving a fraudulent text has become the norm throughout the US.

Americas have reported seemingly random messages with a job offer or even a simple 'How have you been?' from unknown numbers.

Now, experts have identified three specific words that are tell-tale signs of a scam to help people fall victim to the devious tactics. Cybercriminals disproportionately use the words 'Would you kindly' in their texts, which experts say is because the sender is usually foreign and English isn't their first language.

Personalized message scams are on the rise, with Americans receiving roughly 19.2 billion fraudulent texts since March of this year. Text scams can range from someone saying hello to a job opportunity or alleged IRS notice meant to trick you into thinking it's legitimate.

Fortunately, there are ways to know if you're being scammed, including the three-word phrase: 'Would you kindly.'  You might see this in a job offer text from an alleged recruiter asking you to 'kindly' let them know if you're interested in a position, but the problem is that this phrase isn't commonly used within the US.

Tim Bajarin, a 40-year veteran technology analyst, told Readers Digest: 'You'll often hear it used in countries with British influence, perhaps once a colonial country, where English isn't their mother tongue [such as Nigeria, India and Pakistan].'

A message could also ask the recipient to 'kindly' submit information whether it's a Social Security number, bank or credit card information or making a payment. Although 'kindly' isn't grammatically wrong, the fact that it isn't used in the US means it should be flagged the same way you would look at a text sent with spelling or grammatical errors, Bajarin warned.

A final red flag is any text messages coming from someone who claims to be with a bank or the IRS.

'If it's an 'imposter' message, like someone claiming to be from, say, Bank of America or the IRS, never click on the link or attachment,' Doug Shadel, a former fraud investigator and special assistant to the Washington state Attorney General's office told Reader's Digest.

'If you're not sure if it's [legit], you should independently log into that account with your own login and password - not what was sent to you - to see if the institution truly was trying to contact you.'

In 2023, Americans lost a total of $10 billion to scammers from fraudulent text messages, phone calls, emails and through social media, according to a report by the FTC.