The checker reads one suspicious email. Batmail reads your whole inbox overnight.
Paste the Medicare email into the checker and it reads it for the signs below.
The checker reads the sender address, the wording, any link address you paste with the email and what the email asks you to do. It gives a verdict, a risk score from 0 to 100, the exact wording behind each red flag and what to do next. It is free and needs no signup.
Batmail phishing email checker
A fake Medicare email threatens to cancel your coverage unless you confirm your Medicare Number.
Medicare’s pages say to protect your Medicare Number like a credit card, and not to give it to anyone who contacts you by phone, email or in person. The email below is invented, and each number is one of the signs.
Example
Dear Medicare member,
Your coverage will be cancelled unless you confirm your Medicare Number today.
Reply with your Medicare Number and Social Security Number to receive your new card.
A representative will call you today to sign you up for a better plan.
The button says medicare.gov/card
The sender's address is not at medicare.gov.
The display name says Medicare, but the part after the @ belongs to someone else. Medicare's pages we read do not list the addresses it sends from, so use the other signs too.
A threat to cancel your coverage.
Medicare says that if someone calls and asks for your information or money, or threatens to cancel your health benefits, you should end the call and phone 1-800-MEDICARE.
A request by email for your Medicare Number and Social Security Number.
Medicare says not to share your Medicare Number or other personal information with anyone who contacts you by phone, email or in person, unless you reached out first and authorized them.
A promised call to sign you up for a plan.
Medicare says it will never call you to sell you anything or visit you at your home, and lists joining a plan over the phone as something not to do unless you called and asked for help.
A button that says medicare.gov and goes somewhere else.
The label on a button is not the address it opens. Medicare says to protect your Medicare Number like a credit card, so do not type it into a page you reached from an unexpected email.
From Medicare.gov: Your Medicare card, read 8 November 2026.
From Medicare.gov: Reporting Medicare fraud and abuse, read 8 November 2026.
Read the sender's address from the right, because the last two parts say who owns it.
Anyone can put “Medicare” in front of an address. The part to read is the domain, after the @ in a sender or after the https:// in a link. Read it from the right: the last two parts name the owner, and everything in front of them is only a label the owner chose. Medicare’s pages on your card and on reporting fraud are at www.medicare.gov, and the owner of that address is medicare.gov. The Medicare pages we read say nothing about how Medicare’s own emails look, so this check only catches a lookalike. The rule that matters is the one about your Medicare Number.
Read the domain from the right
www.medicare.gov
From MedicareOwned by medicare.gov. This is the address of Medicare's own pages on your card and on reporting fraud.
medicare.gov.card-renewal.example
Not from MedicareOwned by card-renewal.example. medicare.gov is only a label in front of it.
medicare-card-desk.example
Not from MedicareOwned by medicare-card-desk.example. The name has Medicare in it, but the owner is someone else.
From Medicare.gov: Your Medicare card, read 8 November 2026.
Medicare says it will never call you uninvited and ask for personal or private information.
Medicare’s pages are mostly about phone calls, but one rule covers email too: do not share your Medicare Number with anyone who contacts you by phone, email or in person. The table sets the pages’ rules beside what a fake notice does.
| Question | What Medicare says | What a fake does |
|---|---|---|
| Can someone who emails me ask for my Medicare Number? | What Medicare saysMedicare says not to share your Medicare Number or other personal information with anyone who contacts you by phone, email or in person, unless you reached out first and authorized them. | What a fake doesEmails you and asks you to confirm your Medicare Number. |
| Will Medicare call to ask for private information? | What Medicare saysMedicare says it will never call you uninvited and ask you to give it personal or private information. It will only call and ask for personal information in limited situations, such as calling you back after you left a message. | What a fake doesSays a representative will call you today. |
| Will Medicare sell me something or visit my home? | What Medicare saysMedicare says it will never call you to sell you anything or visit you at your home. | What a fake doesPromises a representative will call or visit to sign you up. |
| Can I join a plan over the phone? | What Medicare saysMedicare lists joining a Medicare health or drug plan over the phone as something not to do, unless you called and asked for help. | What a fake doesSays one call today will lock in your new plan. |
| Who may ask for my Medicare Number? | What Medicare saysMedicare says to give it only to health care providers, insurers and plans along with their licensed agents or brokers, and trusted people who work with Medicare. | What a fake doesAsks for it through a link or a reply. |
From Medicare.gov: Your Medicare card, read 8 November 2026.
From Medicare.gov: Reporting Medicare fraud and abuse, read 8 November 2026.
To check a Medicare message, end the contact and call 1-800-MEDICARE yourself.
Medicare says that if someone asks for your information or money, or threatens to cancel your health benefits, you should end the call and phone 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227). The number is Medicare’s own, so it is the one to use to check an email too.
How to check a message that says it is from Medicare
- Stop
End the call, or click nothing.
Medicare says to end the call if someone asks for your information or money, or threatens to cancel your health benefits.
- Do not share
Not your Medicare Number.
Medicare says to protect your Medicare Number like a credit card.
- Call 1-800-MEDICARE
Medicare's own number.
Medicare gives 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) to call to check, and to report fraud.
From Medicare.gov: Your Medicare card, read 8 November 2026.
From Medicare.gov: Reporting Medicare fraud and abuse, read 8 November 2026.
Five steps tell you whether a Medicare email is real without clicking anything.
- Leave the button and every link alone, and do not share your Medicare Number with anyone who contacts you by email. Medicare says to give it only to health care providers, insurers and plans, and trusted people who work with Medicare.
- Read the sender’s actual address from the right, as in the picture above. The Medicare pages we read do not list the addresses it sends from, so a lookalike is a reason to stop.
- Call 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) if a message asks for your information or money, or threatens to cancel your health benefits.
- Paste the email into the checker at the top of this page for a second read.
- Report it. If you suspect fraud, Medicare says to call 1-800-MEDICARE or report Medicare fraud online. The FTC says to forward a phishing email to reportphishing@apwg.org. In Gmail you can also choose More next to Reply, then Report phishing.
Steps from Medicare.gov: Reporting Medicare fraud and abuse, read 8 November 2026.
Steps from FTC Consumer Advice: How To Recognize and Avoid Phishing Scams, read 8 November 2026.
Steps from Gmail Help: Avoid & report phishing emails, read 8 November 2026.
If someone may be using your Medicare Number, Medicare says to call 1-800-MEDICARE.
Medicare says that if you think someone else is using your Medicare Number, you should call 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227). If you suspect identity theft, or feel you gave your personal information to someone you shouldn’t have, it says to contact the Federal Trade Commission. The FTC says that if something may have downloaded, you should update your computer’s security software and run a scan.
What to do depends on what you did
You only read it.
Delete it. If you suspect fraud, call 1-800-MEDICARE or report Medicare fraud online.
You clicked, or gave your Medicare Number.
Call 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) and say someone may be using your Medicare Number. If something may have downloaded, update your computer's security software and run a scan.
You gave other personal information, or money.
Follow the steps at IdentityTheft.gov for what you shared, and contact the Federal Trade Commission.
From Medicare.gov: Your Medicare card, read 8 November 2026.
From Medicare.gov: Reporting Medicare fraud and abuse, read 8 November 2026.
From FTC Consumer Advice: What To Do if You Were Scammed, read 8 November 2026.
From FTC Consumer Advice: How To Recognize and Avoid Phishing Scams, read 8 November 2026.
The same checks work on other government emails.
A threat to cancel a benefit can borrow the name of any agency. The guide to fake Social Security emails covers a statement that is ready to download, and the guide to fake IRS emails covers a notice that asks for payment. The holiday scam emails guide puts the kinds side by side.
These are the questions people ask next.
How can I tell a real Medicare email from a fake one?
Medicare's pages we read do not describe its own emails or list the addresses it sends from. They say not to share your Medicare Number or other personal information with anyone who contacts you by phone, email or in person, unless you reached out first and authorized them. They also say Medicare will never call you uninvited and ask you to give it personal or private information.
Will Medicare ever call or visit me?
Medicare says it will never call you to sell you anything or visit you at your home. It says it, or someone representing it, will only call and ask for personal information in limited situations, such as calling you back after you left it a message.
Is my Medicare Number the same as my Social Security Number?
No. Medicare says your card has a Medicare Number that is unique to you and is not your Social Security Number, which helps protect your identity. It says to protect your Medicare Number like a credit card.
What do I do if someone threatens to cancel my benefits?
Medicare says that if someone calls and asks for your information or money, or threatens to cancel your health benefits, you should end the call and phone 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227).
How do I report Medicare fraud or a fake email?
If you suspect fraud, Medicare says to call 1-800-MEDICARE or report Medicare fraud online. Its pages we read do not name an address for forwarding a phishing email. The FTC says to forward a phishing email to the Anti-Phishing Working Group at reportphishing@apwg.org and to report it at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
What if I gave out my Medicare Number?
Medicare says that if you think someone else is using your Medicare Number, you should call 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227). If you suspect identity theft, or feel you gave your personal information to someone you shouldn't have, it says to contact the Federal Trade Commission.
Every step on this page comes from these official pages.
Read on . Spot a step that has changed? Email support@batmail.ai and we will fix it.