Understanding scam risk levels: what LOW to CRITICAL means
How Paxello assesses risk
When you forward a message to Paxello, our AI analyses it across multiple dimensions — checking for urgency language, suspicious URLs, impersonation patterns, known scam indicators, and more. The result is a risk score from 0 to 100, mapped to four clear tiers.
The four risk tiers
LOW (0–30)
The message shows no significant scam indicators. It's likely legitimate, but always exercise normal caution with any unsolicited message.
What to do: No immediate action needed. The message appears safe.
MEDIUM (31–60)
The message contains some suspicious elements but isn't definitively a scam. This might be an aggressive marketing message, a poorly worded legitimate notification, or an early-stage scam attempt.
What to do: Don't click any links in the message. Verify the sender independently by contacting the organisation through their official website or the phone number on your card.
HIGH (61–85)
The message shows strong indicators of a scam. Multiple red flags have been detected — such as urgency language combined with suspicious links or impersonation of a known organisation.
What to do: Do not respond to or engage with this message. Block the sender. If it claims to be from your bank or a government agency, contact them directly using a number you trust (not one from the message).
CRITICAL (86–100)
The message is almost certainly a scam. It matches known scam patterns, contains malicious indicators, or closely mimics messages used in confirmed fraud campaigns.
What to do: Delete the message immediately. Block the sender. Report it to Scamwatch or call 1300 795 995. If you've already clicked a link or shared information, contact your bank's fraud line immediately.
What goes into the score
Paxello analyses several signal categories:
- Language analysis — urgency, threats, emotional manipulation
- URL inspection — domain reputation, redirect chains, typosquatting
- Sender patterns — known scam numbers, spoofed caller IDs
- Content matching — similarity to confirmed scam databases (Scamwatch, ATO alerts)
- Financial indicators — requests for money, gift cards, cryptocurrency
Each signal contributes to the overall score. A single weak signal might result in LOW, while multiple strong signals compound into HIGH or CRITICAL.
Why we use tiers, not just numbers
A score of 73 doesn't mean much to most people. But "HIGH — this message shows strong indicators of a scam" is immediately actionable. The tier system translates complex analysis into clear guidance that anyone can follow, regardless of technical background.