Community watch against scams

🚑 I've already fallen for it: what to do right now

First: breathe. Falling for a scam happens to people of every age and background — scams are designed by professionals to deceive. It's not your fault, and acting quickly can recover your money or stop the damage. Follow these steps in this order.

Step 1 — If you gave banking details or made a payment: call your bank NOW

• Call the number printed on the back of your card or in your bank's official app (never a number the scammer gave you).
• Ask them to block the card if you gave its details, and to reverse or hold the transfer or payment you made. The sooner you call, the more options there are.
• Ask specifically about disputing a fraudulent transaction: banks have a procedure for this, and in many cases of unauthorised charges they're required to refund you.

Step 2 — If you gave passwords or SMS codes

• Change that service's password now, and any other service where you used the same one.
• Turn on two-step verification wherever you can (bank, email, social media).
• Your email is the master key: if you gave away its password, change that one first and check its settings for any forwarding rules or unfamiliar devices that may have been added.

Step 3 — Save the evidence

• Take screenshots of the messages, the scammer's number or email, the fake website, and any payment receipts. Don't delete the conversation yet.

Step 4 — Report it

• Report it to the police: bring your screenshots and receipts. A police report is usually needed for a bank dispute and helps authorities track the network.
• Contact your national cybersecurity helpline — in Spain, the free 017 line run by INCIBE (also WhatsApp 900 116 117). They offer free, judgement-free guidance every day of the year.
• If it was an SMS in Spain, forward it to 7726 so mobile operators can block it.

Step 5 — Watch the following days

• Check your bank statements daily for a couple of weeks.
• Be wary of later calls or emails claiming to be "from the bank" or "from the police" offering to "help you get the money back": scammers resell their victims' details, and this "recovery scam" follow-up is very common.
• You can turn on free email monitoring in Shield404, so we alert you if it appears in new data breaches.

Learn to recognise the most common scams