Beat the scammers
Scammers are getting smarter - but you don’t need to be an expert to spot them.
Once you know the warning signs, it’s much easier to stay in control and protect yourself.
This page brings together practical advice and simple tools to help you avoid online and phone‑based scams.
How do you beat the scammers?
Most scams follow the same patterns. If something doesn’t feel right, trust your instincts and slow things down.
Knowing what to look for puts the power back in your hands.
Spotting a scam
Scam messages often use one or more of these tactics:
- Authority - Claiming to be from someone official, like a bank, delivery company or service provider
- Urgency - Pressuring you to act immediately or risk losing money or access
- Emotion - Messages designed to make you feel panicked, excited, worried or hopeful
If you weren’t expecting the message - or it pushes you to act fast - pause and double‑check before doing anything.
Reporting a scam helps protect you and other customers — and it’s quick and easy.
Scam calls
If your bank uses the 159 service, you can:
Dial 159 from your TalkTalk landline
Get straight through to your bank’s fraud team
This lets you check whether a call is genuine before taking any action.
Phishing emails
If you receive an email claiming to be from TalkTalk that doesn’t look right:
- Don’t click any links
- Let us know so we can help stop others being targeted
See phishing emails and everything you need to know for simple reporting steps.
Spam text messages
To report suspicious texts:
- Forward the message to 7726 (this is a government service)
This free service helps mobile networks and the government take action against scam senders
If you have a phone line as part of your plan you can add CallSafe, our call‑screening service.
CallSafe:
- Asks unknown callers to say who they are
- Lets you decide whether to accept the call
- Causes most scam callers to hang up straight away
Learn more: CallSafe
Our HomeSafe Scam Protection filter is great for weeding online baddies out of your network. It keeps a block list of known phishing sites and sites used by scam callers. These sites will never load for anyone using your network.
Additionally, our award-winning SuperSafe Online Security includes a Banking Protection feature which notifies you when banking sites are 100% safe.
Learn more: HomeSafe
If something doesn’t feel right, don’t worry - there are steps you can take to get things sorted.
We’ll guide you through what to do, including how to protect your details and who to contact.
What to do if you've been targeted by fraud