A scam is a deception or scheme to trick someone out of something, such as money. A ‘scam’ is a common way of referring to a fraud, which is a criminal offence.
If you think you’ve been affected by a scam, report it to your local police service and/ or Action Fraud. You can also report fraud on behalf of someone else.
The National Cyber Security Centre publish a list of the top ‘fake’ governmental scam and phishing emails. Keep an eye on their website for updates to the list.
Use strong passwords, and different passwords for different log ins. You can use a tool that manages your passwords, so you don’t forget them.
Make sure websites are secure before you enter any information. Check to see if they have a green padlock icon and ‘https’ at the beginning of the URL. Also, take a look at the website’s privacy policy.
Be cautious about sharing personal information on social media, such as your location, hometown, and date of birth.
Oversharing can put your personal information at risk.
Check your privacy settings so you’re aware of who can view your posts.
If you’re called by someone and you don’t recognise the number, https://who-called.co.uk/ offers a free service where you can look a phone number up.
If you’re called by a withheld number, and you weren’t expecting the call, don’t feel pressured to answer your phone. A legitimate caller should be supportive if you want to check who they are first.
Above all, never let someone push you into giving out personal information over the phone.
Most phone providers are part of a scheme that allows customers to report suspicious text messages for free by forwarding it to 7726. If you forward a text to 7726, your provider can investigate the origin of the text and arrange to block or ban the sender, if it’s found to be malicious.
