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Anyone that receives a suspicious-looking message in their Gmail, Hotmail or other email inbox needs to do one thing to help keep others safe. Action Fraud – the UK’s national fraud and cyber crime reporting centre – has revealed that as of the end of May 2022 a whopping 12million emails have been forward to the Government’s Suspicious Email Reporting Service (SERS). This is easy enough to do, with anyone that spots a potential scam just needing to forward it to [email protected].

And the millions of Brits who have done this have helped make the internet a safer place, with this leading to 83,000 scams and 153,000 malicious websites being shut down.

Action Fraud said the most impersonated organisations in phishing emails reported last year were the NHS, HMRC and gov.uk.

So be on the lookout, especially for fake messages from these well-known public bodies.

Detective Chief Superintendent Oliver Shaw, from City of London Police, said: “Phishing scams continue to pose a significant threat for both individuals and businesses. I would urge everyone to be vigilant of unexpected messages or calls that ask for your personal or financial information.

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“If you receive a call or message that you think might be a scam, don’t respond to it. Instead, contact the organisation directly using contact information from the company’s official website, and not the links or numbers provided in the message itself.

“Remember, your bank, or any other official source, will never ask you to supply personal information via email or text message.”

While a Home Office spokesperson added: “Phishing scams are not only a public nuisance, they are illegal.

“I urge everyone to be extremely vigilant and report to Action Fraud if you think you have been a victim of fraud.”

The National Fraud Intelligence Bureau’s Cyber Protect team also has some handy tips to help people stay clear of scams.

They advise…

Stop – Taking a moment to stop and think before parting with your money or information could keep you safe

Challenge – Could it be fake? It’s okay to reject, refuse or ignore any requests. Only criminals will try to rush or panic you

Protect – If you think you’ve been a victim of fraud, contact your bank immediately and report it to Action Fraud online or by calling 0300 123 2040, or Police Scotland on 101

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