Mar 13, 2026
Temu free prizes
Temu is a Chinese company which offers heavily discounted consumer goods, typically shipped directly from China where most things are manufactured. The general catch is risks to user privacy due to extensive data collection, concerns about unethical labour practices and forced labour in its supply chain and poor or inconsistent product quality.
There is an ongoing widespread scam in which the scammer posing as Temu sends an email which claims that the victim could receive a prize such as a free or heavily discounted e-bike in exchange for answering a few questions about their shopping experience with the brand. The victim will then click on a dodgy website and give their personal data.
Cloud Service Full
Cloud storage is a method of storing digital data on
remote servers, accessible over the internet, rather than on local devices like hard drives. Multiple companies offer a form of cloud service, including Google (Drive), Microsoft (OneDrive) and Apple (iCloud).
Scammers sometimes send messages claiming to be the cloud provider and they inform you that your cloud storage is full and you must pay to upgrade. They can sometimes even claim that you will no longer be able to send messages or that your account will be locked or even deleted if you don’t respond to the message urgently.
If the user was at or over the limit for their storage, the worst-case scenario would be that you may not be able to edit your files or upload new ones, depending on the provider’s methods, but your account would not be locked or deleted.
Winter fuel payments
Criminals will message you claiming to be from the government and ask you to update your details or
complete an application to receive your Winter Fuel Payment. They’ll direct you to a fake government or energy website that looks just like the real thing.
The website will ask for your personal information and card details, which the criminals will use to make fraudulent payments. If you’re eligible for the Winter Fuel Payment, the government won’t text or email you. Most people that are eligible will get their payment automatically and receive a letter to confirm the amount. You can use the real government website to check if you are eligible.
Mar 13, 2026
Report Fraud is the UK’s national reporting centre for fraud and cybercrime where you should report fraud in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Between April 2018 and March 2019, 741,123 crimes were reported to Report Fraud, with a total of £2.2bn lost by victims.
They pass on reports on fraud to the necessary authorities, provide guidance and resources to prevent fraud and gather news articles which provide advice about how to avoid scams and scams that are currently being used.
They also give information about different forms of cybercrime and how to prevent yourself from getting hit by cyberattacks.
Reports are passed onto the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau (NFIB) who assess and analyse the reports then send them to the appropriate police forces for investigation.
The Home Office funds Report Fraud and the NFIB and the City of London police, which is the national lead police force on fraud, runs the 2 organisations.
The charity, Victim Support, provides free and confidential support to victims, witnesses of crime, their friends & family and anyone affected across England and Wales. When reporting fraud, users can request support from Victim Support.
If you wish to contact Report Fraud, you can call them at 0300 123 2040 Monday to Friday 8am – 8pm or register online for their online reporting tool.
https://www.reportfraud.police.uk/
Mar 13, 2026
What I want you to do is go onto a website, like YouTube, BBC News or Amazon. Then either press “Ctrl” and “U” at the same time or click “Inspect” on Edge or “View Page Source” on Chrome or something similar. What comes up is the source code. This is written by developers to make the website function and look nice.
Cyber-criminals can use this to their advantage. If you clicked on a link that claimed it was from your bank and you found a site that look messy and nothing like it usually does, you’d probably not go ahead with using the website.
To bypass that, criminals will take the source code, keep the outside formatting but change both some of the text and the behind-the-scenes parts of the website to carry out their crimes.
Here’s an example of a fake post. Looks just like the real thing, but I didn’t know that Alan Sugar and David Beckham were journalists.
For example, display an urgent warning message, and instead of the login button giving you access to your bank account, your email address, card number and password are just sent to the attacker’s computer. Therefore, it is important to be wary when clicking on links. If the email doesn’t match the usual format, the sender’s address looks suspicious or the web address doesn’t match, those could be all signs of something wrong.
Ultimately, if you’re not sure, use Google to access the website directly or contact the company via established contact details for confirmation of the email’s claims. If you already clicked on the link and entered any details, close the page, call the real company so that they can lock your account if needed or change your password.
You can also check here to see if a website is genuine or not:
https://www.getsafeonline.org/checkawebsite/
Mar 13, 2026
Romance scams (long-term catfishing, sharing of personal info, makes it easy to manipulate victim)
These usually happen online (dating sites, social media, games). The scammer pretends to be romantically interested and spends weeks or months building trust. They often share fake stories, pictures, and emotions to make the victim feel a deep connection. Once the victim is emotionally invested, the scammer asks for money, gifts, or personal details (like bank info) and uses guilt or love as pressure.
Banking/Investment scams (they ask for money and claim they can double it, one way or another)
These scams promise huge returns with little or no risk, often through fake investment platforms, cryptocurrency schemes, or “get rich quick” opportunities. Victims are told to deposit money. Eventually, the scammer either disappears or pressures the victim to “invest more” before they can withdraw anything.
Impersonation scams (pretending to be a loved one, typically requesting financial support due to an emergency)
Here, the scammer contacts the victim claiming to be a friend, relative, or partner in trouble. They might say they’ve been in an accident, arrested abroad, or stuck with unexpected expenses. They usually demand urgent money transfers and rely on panic and concern, so the victim doesn’t stop to verify the situation.
Blackmail scams (claiming to have private data they will leak)
The scammer says they’ve hacked into the victim’s accounts or devices and claim to have compromising photos, videos, or sensitive information. They threaten to share this with family, friends, or employers unless the victim pays (often in cryptocurrency). In most cases, they actually have no real data — they just rely on fear and embarrassment.
Technical support scams (claim that you have a virus and need to download an app or visit a website—which is usually the real virus—to get rid of it)
The scammer poses as a tech support agent from companies like Microsoft, Apple, or your internet provider. They warn you about a fake virus or security breach, then tell you to install software or visit a website. The software is actually malware that lets them steal data, lock your files (ransomware), or demand payment for fake fixes.
Mar 13, 2026
BeStreamWise is an ongoing campaign about banning illegal streams. It was started in 2023 and is backed by several companies and organisations including the government’s Intellectual Property Office, Crimestoppers, the Federation Against Copyright Theft (Fact), ITV, Sky and the Premier League. a website dedicated to informing visitors about the dangers of using illegal streaming websites. It discusses the risks of accessing illegal websites, such as accidently downloading viruses, some facts about the dangers of illegal streams, news articles about people running illegal streaming services getting arrested and convicted.
It also provides the user with more info about identifying dodgy websites and where to report them to. It also links to websites such as JustWatch which provides info on publicly and legally accessible TV shows and movies and the digital platforms that you can view them on such as Netflix, Prime Video, BBC iPlayer and even the cinema with prices.
https://bestreamwise.com/
