Stay Safe
Recognize a suspicious message before it costs you
Almost every scam relies on the same few pressures: urgency, a threat, a tempting offer, or a request for information that a real company would never ask for by text or email.
This is not a real message from us. It is written to look like one, so you can practise spotting it.
What an imitation of our email looks like
Smart Living 50+From: Smart Living 50+ Support <support@smartliving50-help.com>
Subject: URGENT: your account will be closed in 24 hours
Dear Customer,3
We have detected unusual activity on your account. For your protection you must verify your details within 24 hours or your account will be permanently suspended.4
(In the real email this hides the address it would send you to.)
If you cannot log in, simply reply to this email with your password and the one-time code we have texted to your phone.6
Or call our team on 0800 123 4567.7
The Smart Living Team
Seven clues it is fake
- 1The part after the @ is not our address. Ours is the one printed on your receipts and in the app.
- 2A deadline of hours, not days. Urgency is there to stop you thinking.
- 3"Dear Customer" instead of your name. A real message uses your name.
- 4A threat: your account will be closed. Real companies do not threaten you into clicking.
- 5The button leads somewhere else. The words say one thing, the address behind them says another.
- 6It asks for your password and a one-time code. Nobody legitimate ever does, by email or by phone.
- 7A phone number inside the message. Always use a number you look up yourself.
One clue is enough to stop. Delete the message, then open the app yourself if you want to check your account.
If a phone call asks for any of these, it is a scam
This holds even when the caller knows your name, your address, or part of your account. Caller ID can be faked, and a friendly, urgent voice is part of the trick.
- Your password, a one-time code, a PIN or your security answers.
- Your Social Security number.
- Your account information or login details.
- Any financial information: bank account or sort code, card numbers, a Cash App tag or a Cash App code.
- A link you are asked to open on your phone, sent by text or read out over the call.
What to do: hang up. Do not tap a link they text you, and do not call the number they read out. Call the company back on the number printed on your bill, your card, or their official website, and ask them whether the call was real.
The warning signs
One sign is worth a pause. Two signs together are a reason to stop.
- Urgency: a message that says you must act in minutes or hours is almost always a scam.
- A link that does not quite match the company name, or a sender address that looks slightly wrong.
- A request for a password, a one-time code, a PIN or your card details. Legitimate companies do not ask by text or email.
- Payment by gift card, wire transfer or cryptocurrency. These are hard to reverse and are a favourite of fraudsters.
- Messages about a delivery you are not expecting, a refund you did not request, or a prize you did not enter.
If something feels wrong
Slow down. The safest next step is almost always to stop and verify from a source you chose yourself.
- Do not reply, and do not tap the link. Replying confirms your number is live.
- Contact the company using the number on your bill, your card or their official website, never the number in the message.
- If you shared card details, call your bank straight away and tell them what happened.
- Change the password for any account you are worried about, and turn on two-step verification if it is offered.
- Show the message to someone you trust. A second pair of eyes spots pressure tactics quickly.
A useful rule of thumb