Worried you’re the victim of a scam?
- If you’ve given your bank details or feel they’re at risk, contact your bank immediately
- Report the scam using the police’s Action Fraud service
- Report the scam call to us so we can better protect you and our customers
Think it’s a scam call? Put the phone down
An easy way to deal with a possible scam call or automated message is to simply hang up. Never share bank details, passwords or personal information. And report the scam call to us.
Received a phishing email? Don’t reply, click or open anything
Phishing emails trick people to click. So ignore all instructions to do anything. If you’re sent a BT email you’re not sure about, forward it as an attachment to phishing@bt.com and then delete it.
Simple ways to spot a scam
Fraudsters are known to claim to be from BT, when it’s actually a scam. Even if the email includes a logo that looks genuine, or the caller sounds convincing, there are often tell-tale signs it’s a scam.
Scam calls
- The caller demands something’s done urgently
- They ask for remote access to your computer
- They ask for sensitive information like bank or credit card details
Phishing emails
- It’s asking you to do something urgently and unexpectedly
- It contains bad spelling or grammar
- The email address doesn’t match the organisation it’s sent from
Texts and recorded messages
- It’s asking you press options on your phone to make contact
- It includes a link to take you somewhere unexpected
- It’s a recorded message saying you’ll be disconnected
How to deal with scam calls or phishing emails
Scammers thrive on contact. The longer you’re on the line or viewing an email, the more chance there is of being scammed. End the call or close the email as quickly as you can.
Scam calls – how to deal with them
- Hang up
- If they claim to be from BT, report the scam call
- Block the number if possible
- If you feel the caller may be from a respected business but aren’t sure, end the call. Then look up the business's number and phone them yourself. At BT, we’ll understand any security concerns you may have, and would be happy for you to call us back.
Phishing emails – how to deal with them
- Don't reply, click any links, open any attachments, or download anything
- If the email claims to be from BT, forward it as an attachment to phishing@bt.com
- Forward all suspect emails to report@phishing.gov.uk
- Then delete the email
Texts and recorded messages – how to deal with them
- Don't reply, don’t click any links, don’t call any numbers
- If there’s a number, you can search online to see if it’s genuine
- Forward the text to 7726 so we can help
- Then delete the text
Common scam tactics BT will never ask you to do
- We’ll NEVER call you to say we've found a problem with your computer
- We’ll NEVER ask for payment details over email
- We’ll NEVER call you out of the blue and ask for remote access to your computer or other devices. (If we do need to remotely access your PC, you’ll already have contacted us for support and given us permission to do so)
- We’ll NEVER call to tell you your hub or IP address has been compromised
- We’ll NEVER call to tell you your broadband has been hacked
- We’ll NEVER call to threaten to disconnect your service unless you make a payment immediately
- We’ll NEVER call to ask for your PIN or online banking password
- We’ll NEVER call to ask you to transfer money via PayPal or money transfer websites
- We’ll NEVER call to send someone to collect money from you
How to use My Account to check a message is from us
If you’re not sure if a message is from BT, there’s an easy way to check. We save all the messages we’ve sent you in My Account – your secure area of our website.
- NEVER trust or use any of the contact details or links in a suspicious email. Instead type business.bt.com into your browser to ensure you get to our genuine site.
- Log in to My Account to see the messages we've sent you. You'll also be able confirm your balance and see if any payments are outstanding.
More help to deal with scam calls and phishing emails
Reporting to police
Action Fraud – the UK's fraud and cyber crime reporting centre
Advice and protection
Get Safe Online – advice on protecting yourself online
Telephone Preference Service – service to opt out of receiving unsolicited sales and marketing calls
Help and Support
Cifas – help protect yourself from identity fraud.