About AvoidEm
We're a team of cybersecurity experts, researchers, and advocates on a mission to protect people from online fraud — one alert at a time.
Our Mission
AvoidEm was born from a personal tragedy. In 2017, our founder's mother lost her life savings to a sophisticated romance scam. Despite being an intelligent, educated woman, she was manipulated by a criminal who spent months building her trust.
That experience revealed a critical gap: most people simply don't know what modern scams look like until it's too late. AvoidEm exists to close that gap — providing timely, accurate, and actionable information to help everyone recognize and avoid fraud.
Today we protect over 50,000 people with weekly alerts, in-depth guides, and a growing community of fraud-aware individuals who share intelligence to keep each other safe.
Our Values
The principles that guide everything we do at AvoidEm.
Protection First
Every decision we make is guided by one question: does this help keep people safer online?
Radical Transparency
We publish our sources, methodology, and funding so you can trust the information we provide.
Community Driven
Our best intelligence comes from the community. We empower victims to share their stories safely.
Education Over Fear
We believe informed people are empowered people. We educate, not alarm.
Our Journey
From a personal tragedy to protecting 50,000+ people worldwide.
AvoidEm founded by Sarah Mitchell after her mother lost $40,000 to a romance scam.
Launched the first real-time scam alert database, reaching 5,000 subscribers in 3 months.
Partnered with the FTC and FBI IC3 to share intelligence on COVID-19 fraud campaigns.
Reached 25,000 newsletter subscribers and launched the Scam Types educational hub.
Introduced the AvoidEm Shop and expanded the team to 12 full-time researchers.
Surpassed 50,000 protected users and launched AI-powered scam detection tools.
Expanded internationally, now serving users in 45 countries across 6 continents.
Join Our Mission
Help us protect more people by sharing AvoidEm with your friends, family, and community.