Some common features that you can look for are as follows:
The message is unexpected or from an unusual sender. Whether it comes from someone you know or don't know, if anything seems out of the ordinary or just suspicious, don't click on it.
If the message has a sense of urgency, it probably is false. Criminals often use this tactic to get you to act fast by threatening that you will lose access to your account or your suspend your account if you don't update your information. Legitimate institutions will ususally provide you with an ample amount of time before they take any kind of action such as terminating your account.
Criminals will also use fake hyperlinks in emails and you can identify one if you hover over the URL and investigate it for misspellings or anything out of the ordinary. But, when it doubt don't click on the link.
If you see an attachment in an email you weren't expecting, don't open it! Attachments often contain ransomware or other viruses.