Check text, links, and usernames for letters that look like Latin letters but are not, such as Cyrillic or Greek. Also flags hidden zero-width characters.
This tool runs entirely in your browser. What you enter is never sent anywhere.Your input is never sent anywhere.
DetailsSuspicious characters will be highlighted here
Findings
Nothing to report.
Characters
0
Scripts found
0
ADVICE
A clean result does not mean a link is safe. Before you click, open the official site by typing its address or searching for it, and confirm the sender through a different channel.
What Is a Homoglyph? Lookalike Characters Explained
A homoglyph is a character that looks the same as another character but is a different Unicode character. The classic pair is the Latin letter “a” and the Cyrillic letter “а” (U+0430). In many fonts you cannot tell them apart by eye, but a computer sees two different characters.
Attackers use this to build domain names, usernames, and email text that look like the real thing. When it is used in a web address it is called an IDN homograph attack, and it is a known method behind phishing links and impersonation accounts.
Paste your text and the tool highlights Cyrillic and Greek lookalike letters, words that mix alphabets, and invisible characters. It also shows a cleaned version with the lookalikes replaced by Latin letters, so you can compare it with what you expected to see.
When to Run a Check
A link in an email that claims to be from your bank
Copy the link address from the message, paste it here, and see whether any letter in the domain is not a normal Latin letter before you click.
A username that asks you to trust it
Paste the handle of an account that DMs you about a giveaway, a job, or a payment. Letters swapped for lookalikes show up in red.
A domain that looks too much like yours
If you manage a brand, paste suspicious domains you come across to see whether they use Cyrillic or Greek letters in place of Latin ones.
Text that looks right but will not match
When a search, a password, a config value, or a line of code fails to match something that looks identical, paste it here to find a stray lookalike or zero-width character.
How to Check a Link or Username for Spoofed Letters
- Paste the text, URL, or username into the box. You can also load one of the sample buttons to see how results look.
- The tool analyzes it as you type and highlights lookalike letters, mixed-script words, and hidden characters in the preview.
- Read the Findings panel for each character's position, script, and Unicode code point, and the Latin letter it resembles.
- Compare the cleaned text with the domain or name you expected. If they differ, do not trust the original.
Note: The analysis runs in your browser, and the tool does not send what you paste to a server.
Limits and Accuracy Notes
- The tool checks 45 listed letters (25 Cyrillic and 20 Greek) plus mixed-script words and hidden characters. It does not cover every confusable pair in Unicode.
- A listed Cyrillic or Greek letter is flagged wherever it appears, including in words that are written entirely in Russian or Greek.
- Accented Latin letters and Chinese, Japanese, and Korean text are not flagged by the lookalike or mixed-script checks.
- A zero-width joiner between two emoji is treated as part of the emoji. Other hidden characters are listed with their code points, and some have legitimate uses, so check the context.
- xn-- (Punycode) text is listed but not decoded, so lookalike letters inside it will not be shown.
- Treat the result as one input. Also check the sender and open the official site yourself.
Cyrillic and Greek Letters That Look Like Latin Letters
A sample of the letters the tool detects. Each one is a different character from the Latin letter it resembles.
| Character | Script | Looks like | Code point |
|---|---|---|---|
| а | Cyrillic | a | U+0430 |
| е | Cyrillic | e | U+0435 |
| о | Cyrillic | o | U+043E |
| р | Cyrillic | p | U+0440 |
| с | Cyrillic | c | U+0441 |
| у | Cyrillic | y | U+0443 |
| х | Cyrillic | x | U+0445 |
| і | Cyrillic | i | U+0456 |
| α | Greek | a | U+03B1 |
| ο | Greek | o | U+03BF |
| ρ | Greek | p | U+03C1 |
This is a sample. The tool checks 45 Cyrillic and Greek letters in total, including capital letters.
How to Spot Homograph Attacks and Fake Domains
Habits that help you catch spoofed links and impersonation accounts.
Check the code, not the appearance
These attacks work because people cannot see the difference but computers can. If a link or name feels slightly off, check it at the code point level with a tool instead of judging it by eye.
Know what xn-- means in an address
Internationalized domain names are converted to Punycode, which starts with xn--, behind the scenes. Many browsers display this form when a domain looks suspicious, such as when it mixes alphabets. If you see xn-- in an address you did not expect, stop and verify the site.
Look at where the link goes, not what it says
In phishing emails the visible link text often differs from the real destination. Hover over the link or copy its address, paste it here, and check for lookalike letters before opening it.
Check usernames and verification together
Impersonation accounts may use lookalike letters in the handle. Check the characters here, and also compare the handle with the one listed on the official website. A verification badge is helpful but not a substitute for checking the handle.
Common Mistakes When Checking Suspicious Text
Trusting a domain because it looks right
The link in the email appears to match the site you use every day, so you sign in and the credentials go to a fake page.
💡 See the solution▼
Assuming a DM is real because the name matches
The account name looks the same as a friend, a brand, or a coworker, so you follow the link or send money.
💡 See the solution▼
Debugging a mismatch you cannot see
A copied value fails an equality check, a search returns nothing, or a login is rejected even though the text looks identical to what you expect.
💡 See the solution▼
Questions About Homoglyphs, Punycode, and Spoofed Names
Q.What is a homoglyph attack (homograph attack)?
A. It is a spoofing trick that swaps a letter for a different Unicode character that looks the same. For example, the Cyrillic letter that looks like a Latin "a" can be used in a fake domain or username. On screen the text looks identical to the real one, but the computer treats it as different text. Attackers use this in phishing links, fake domains (IDN homograph attacks), and impersonation accounts.
Q.Will normal text with accents or other languages trigger a warning?
A. Accented Latin letters such as é, ñ, and ü are not flagged, and neither are Chinese, Japanese, or Korean characters. A warning appears in two cases: the text contains one of the listed Cyrillic or Greek lookalike letters, or a single word mixes Latin, Cyrillic, Greek, Armenian, or Cherokee letters. A listed letter is flagged even inside a word written entirely in Russian or Greek, so text in those languages will show results too.
Q.How many lookalike characters does it check?
A. It checks 45 letters: 25 Cyrillic and 20 Greek, each matched to the Latin letter it resembles. It also flags words that mix scripts, and it looks for hidden characters such as zero-width spaces. Unicode's official confusables data is much larger than this list, so treat the tool as a quick check for the most common spoofing letters, not a complete audit.
Q.What does "xn--" mean in a domain name?
A. "xn--" marks Punycode, the way internationalized domain names (IDNs) are written using only ASCII characters. Many browsers show a domain in this form when it looks suspicious. This tool lists any xn-- text it finds but does not decode it. Legitimate sites also use Punycode, so it is a reason to look closer, not proof of a fake. If a link is already in xn-- form, the lookalike letters are hidden inside it, so decode it or open the site's official address instead.
Q.What are hidden or zero-width characters, and why does the tool flag them?
A. These are characters with no visible shape, such as the zero-width space (U+200B), the soft hyphen, and the byte order mark (U+FEFF). They can sit inside a word or URL without showing up, which makes two strings that look the same fail to match. Right-to-left and left-to-right override characters can also change the order in which text is displayed. The tool flags each one by code point so you can see where it is. A zero-width joiner between two emoji is part of the emoji and is not flagged.
Q.Is the text I paste uploaded anywhere?
A. No. The analysis runs in JavaScript in your browser, and the tool does not send your text to a server. You can paste suspicious emails, links, or usernames without them leaving your device.
Q.Can I use it to check a fake social media account?
A. Yes. Impersonation accounts sometimes replace one or two letters in a real username or display name with lookalike characters. Paste the handle or name and check whether any letters are flagged. Also compare it with the handle on the person's or company's official website.
Q.Does a clean result mean a link is safe?
A. No. The tool only detects lookalike characters, mixed scripts, and hidden characters. A phishing link can use a plain ASCII domain that is simply misspelled, or a legitimate-looking name on a different domain. Check the sender, hover over the link to see the real address, and open the official site on your own instead of clicking.
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