How to spot a phishing email or text

Teach: How to spot a phishing email or text

What to say

A phishing email or text pretends to be a company or person you trust and pushes you to act fast: pay an invoice, confirm a delivery, unlock an account or open an attachment. Check the real sender address, hover over links before tapping, and never log in from a link in a message. Go to the company's app or type its address yourself, and report the message as phishing.

What to show, in order

1. Pause whenever a message asks you to act quickly, pay, log in or open a file.
2. Look at the full sender address, not just the display name, for misspellings and odd domains.
3. Press and hold or hover over each link to see where it really goes before tapping.
4. Check the greeting and the details: a real bank knows your name and never asks for your password.
5. Open the company's app, or type its address yourself, to check whether anything is actually wrong.
6. Report the message with the phishing or junk button, then delete it.
7. Change the password at once and turn on two-step login if you already typed it on a linked page.

When to stop and call a professional

• You entered bank or card details on a linked page: call the bank's number from the back of your card straight away.
• You opened an attachment and the computer is acting strangely: disconnect it from the internet and have a trusted repair shop check it.

The check question

Ask: A text says a package is held and links to a payment page. What should you do? Answer: Check the carrier's own app or site directly

From EveryManKnows. General information, not professional advice.