Is this email or text real?
If a message is urgent, unexpected, and wants you to click or call, assume it isn't real until you've checked another way.
What's usually going on
Scam messages copy the look of banks, delivery firms, Apple, Microsoft, and people you know. They work by rushing you: a locked account, a missed delivery, a payment you didn't make. The link leads to a convincing copy of the real site, built to collect your password or card.
Worth trying first
Don't use the link or number in the message.
Go to the company yourself: type its address, open its app, or call the number on your card or statement.
Look at the actual sender.
Tap or click the sender's name to see the full address. A real bank does not write from a free email account or a misspelled domain.
Notice the pressure.
Threats, deadlines, prizes, and requests for gift cards, wire transfers, or codes sent to your phone are the signature of a scam.
Never read out a code.
A sign-in code texted to you is for you alone. No real company will call and ask you for it.
If in doubt, ask.
Forward it to someone you trust before doing anything. A minute's delay costs nothing if it's real.
When to hand it over
If you clicked, entered a password, or gave card details, change that password now from a different device and call your bank using the number on your card. Then get in touch, and we'll check what else that password could open.
Your own technologist, on call.
Tell us a little about your setup. We'll take it from there.