How to Protect Yourself from Online Scammers

Online scams are schemes to con you out of your money using your computer and the internet, either through fake websites or emails. Although there are many ways scammers can get into your computer to steal your money and identity, there are ways you can protect yourself.

We will go through what you can do to cut down the chance of others getting hold of personal information through your computer, tablet or smart phone.

What you can do to protect yourself

To protect your identity and cash from online scammers:

only allow someone to remotely access your computer if they are from a trusted source, such as your internet service provider

create passwords which are long, unique and use a mix of random numbers and lower and upper case letters. The longer the password the harder it is to guess. A ten digit password is better than an eight digit one. Make sure you change passwords regularly and don't share them

use antivirus software and keep it up to date. This will check for malicious computer programmes and monitor files before they are opened. Up-to-date software is important to protect against the most recent viruses. If you buy software online make sure it is from a genuine supplier

understand what software you are installing on your computer or phone and make sure you are using a secure site when you buy software, tablet or smart phone.  A secure site will have a web address beginning with https not http

make sure you leave your firewall switched on. A firewall is a security shield that stops scammers getting into your computer. Operating systems such as Windows come with built in firewall settings. They can monitor and warn you of unexpected access to your computer

make sure you regularly install updates to your operating system. Windows is an example of an operating system

install the latest version of your web browser, for example Internet Explorer, which will have the latest security features

don’t open suspicious or unknown emails, email attachments, texts or pop up messages.  For example an email with an unusually worded subject heading

before entering payment card details on a website, make sure the link is secure.

Making sure you have a secure link

You can make sure you have a secure link in three ways:

1. check there's a padlock symbol in the browser window frame, which appears when you attempt to log in or register. Be sure the padlock is not on the page itself – if it is this will probably indicate a fraudulent site

2. check the web address begins with ‘https://’. The ‘s’ stands for ‘secure’

3. if you're using the latest version of your browser, the address bar or the name of the site owner will turn green.

If you receive a possible scam email

If you have opened a scam email:

don’t reply to the email

don’t click on any links in the email or open any attachments

if you have already clicked on a link and opened a website, don’t give any personal information out.

Top tips

No genuine online company will contact you to ask for your log-in details, such as your password or user id.  You should only need to provide this information when you are logging onto a service such as online banking. Look for https at the beginning of the web address to make sure the site is really secure.