Take a breath. Start here.

Do these first

You clicked a link or shared details

1. Stop replying. Don’t call numbers or open links from the message.
2. If card or bank details were shared, or money moved, call your bank’s fraud line now, using the number on the back of your card.
3. Change the password for any account you entered, starting with your email. Use a different device if you can.
4. Report it. In Australia: ReportCyber and Scamwatch. IDCARE gives free support if your identity details were taken.

Do these first

You sent money to a scammer

1. Call your bank or card provider now, using the number on the back of your card or their own website, and ask them to stop the payment. The sooner you call, the better the chance.
2. Stop all contact with the scammer, and don’t send anything more.
3. Report it to police through ReportCyber, and to Scamwatch. Keep screenshots of the messages and the payment details.
4. Ignore anyone offering to get your money back for a fee. Scammers contact people who’ve lost money with exactly that offer. It’s another scam.

Free support: IDCARE on 1800 595 160. Advice any time: the Australian Cyber Security Hotline, 1300 CYBER1 (1300 292 371).

Do these first

You can’t get into an account

1. Use the official recovery page. Type the web address yourself rather than following a link from a message.
2. Check your email for “password changed” or “new sign-in” alerts, and act on them.
3. If your email itself was taken over, recover that first. Most other accounts reset through it.
4. Once you’re back in: a new password, two-factor sign-in, and a check for forwarding rules and unknown devices.

Do these first

You’ve lost your phone or laptop

1. Locate it, lock it, or put a message on screen with Apple’s Find My, or Google’s Find Hub (previously Find My Device).
2. If it holds sensitive information and won’t turn up, erase it remotely.
3. Change the passwords for accounts it was signed in to, starting with email and banking.
4. Lost a phone? Ask your mobile carrier to suspend the SIM, so nobody can use your number for sign-in codes.

Do these first

Your computer is acting strangely

1. If someone might have remote control (the mouse moving on its own, or a “support” caller you let in), turn off Wi-Fi or unplug the network cable now.
2. Don’t sign in to banking or type passwords on it until it’s been checked.
3. Write down what happened and any messages on screen. A photo of the screen is fine.
4. Get it checked before you use it for anything important.

Safety first

Someone is threatening to share images of you

1. Don’t pay, and don’t send anything more. Paying usually leads to more demands.
2. Stop all contact, and collect evidence first: screenshots of the threats and of the account sending them.
3. Report the account to the app or site where they contacted you. If an image is shared, or the platform doesn’t help, report it to eSafety.
4. If you’re under 18, report it to the Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation, and tell an adult you trust.

Already paid? Contact your bank or the money transfer service straight away: they may be able to stop it. And talk to someone you trust. You don’t have to handle this alone.

Safety first

You think someone is watching your phone

1. If you’re in danger right now, call 000.
2. Use a phone or computer they can’t get to to look for help: a friend’s phone, a work computer or a library.
3. Don’t remove anything yet. Deleting an app or changing passwords can alert the person, and can remove evidence. Make a safety plan first.
4. Talk to 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732, any time. It’s free and confidential, and helps with technology and safety too.

Once you have a plan and it’s safe, your devices and accounts can be checked and secured.

Do these first

Your identity details were stolen

1. Call IDCARE on 1800 595 160 for free, expert support and a plan for your situation.
2. Ask for a credit ban with one credit reporting body (Equifax, Experian or illion), and ask it to pass your request to the other two. A ban stops your credit report being used or shared for 21 days, and can be extended. How credit bans work
3. Change your passwords for email, banking and government accounts, and turn on two-step sign-in.
4. Ask whoever issued each stolen document, such as a driver licence or passport, what to do next.