Online Safety

💻🔒 Stay Safe Online and Protect Yourself from Scams

Criminals are constantly finding new ways to target people online. Taking a few simple precautions can help protect your personal information, money, and devices.

Top Tips:

🔐 Use strong, unique passwords for your online accounts and enable two-factor authentication where available.

📱 Keep your devices, apps, and antivirus software up to date.

⚠️ Be cautious of unexpected emails, texts, phone calls, or social media messages asking for personal or financial information.

🔗 Do not click on links or open attachments from unknown or suspicious sources.

🏦 Never share banking details, PINs, passwords, or security codes with anyone.

🛒 Only shop through reputable websites and ensure the website address begins with https://.

👥 Review privacy settings on social media and avoid sharing personal information such as your address, phone number, or holiday plans.

🎣 Be aware of phishing scams designed to trick you into revealing sensitive information.

📞 If someone contacts you claiming to be from your bank, the police, or another organisation, verify their identity using a trusted number before taking any action.

Remember:

✅ Stop and think before sharing information or sending money.

✅ If something seems too good to be true, it probably is.

✅ Report suspicious messages by forwarding scam texts to 7726 and suspicious emails to report@phishing.gov.uk.

If You Think You Have Been a Victim of Fraud:

📞 Contact your bank immediately.

🌐 Report it to Report Fraud via www.reportfraud.police.uk or call 0300 123 2040.

Together, we can make our communities safer online.