← Cyber Blog

SIM Swapping – Why and how to keep your phone number safe

Download the plain text version of this blog here: SIM Swapping blog plain text version

At a quick glance:

SIM Swapping is when criminals take control of your phone number so they can intercept calls, texts and security codes linked to your accounts.

They use your personal information to convince your phone provider that they are you, answering any security questions with the information they have stolen.

If your phone suddenly loses signal or something does not look right, act quickly and contact your phone provider.

Keep reading for more info and advice on SIM Swapping.

Or head to our NEW course ‘Saying safe from SIM Swapping’ on our online learning platform My.Lead.org.uk

Image of an e-learning course titled ‘Staying safe from SIM swapping’, the course image is of a SIM card with a criminal on it.

Staying safe from SIM Swapping

For SIM Swapping to work, cyber criminals have to convince your phone provider that they are you. They do this through gathering your personal information to answer any of the security questions.

They gather your personal information through phishing emails or texts, data breeches or by reading your social media posts.

Here are three things you can do to keep your information safe from cyber criminals:

1 – Be wary of phishing attacks. Don’t click on links from or respond to unsolicited emails, texts or phone calls. These may allow criminals to access personal data which can then be used to convince the mobile phone network or bank that they are you.

Here are some of our other resources on Phishing: Phishing easy read; Phishing scams BSL video; Phishing My.Lead course

2 – Reduce your digital footprint. Avoid sharing too much on social media, especially personal information like phone numbers, email addresses, dates of birth, home addresses. And personal interests that are common password phrases like your favourite football team, or the name of your first pet or school.

Here are some of our other resources on digital footprint: Digital footprint easy read; Digital footprint BSL video; Digital footprint My.Lead course.

3 – Stop using text messages for 2FA. 2FA is a great way to keep our accounts safe (read more about 2FA below), but using an authenticator app or a secure email instead of texts reduces the risk from SIM swapping.

Why does it matter is my SIM is Swapped and someone takes my number?

Your phone number is unique to you. It can make life a bit complicated or be a hassle if you ever change your phone number. There’s lots of people to update as well as essential services like your doctor, or any of your online accounts like your bank or social media.

Your phone number can also act as your 2-Factor Authentication (2FA). This is a second layer of security that works alongside your password to keep your accounts and information safe. It works by sending a code via SMS (text) to your phone number when logging in to an account.

2FA was once a very safe way of protecting or recovering our accounts, but SIM Swapping is a very clever way of cyber criminals getting round this. They can’t bypass 2FA or guess your codes, but they can steal your texts by SIM Swapping.

If cyber criminals are successful in a SIM Swap they have access to your phone number and can pass any 2-Factor Authentication texts. They can then access your accounts and banking as they not only have your passwords but a secondary way of proving they are you.

How do I know if I’ve been SIM Swapped?

Here are four things to look out for that might be indicators your SIM has been swapped:

1 – You can’t make calls or send texts, your mobile isn’t connecting to service anymore.

2 – Your mobile phone provider notifies you that your SIM card or phone number has been activated on a different device, and you weren’t expecting this.

3 – You lose access to accounts, your login credentials no longer work for things like online banking.

4 – Your contacts have started receiving requests for money from you that you have no knowledge of.

What do I do if I think I’ve been SIM Swapped?

Call your network provider immediately. If you receive unsolicited text or email about your SIM being ported or a PAC request, or you unexpectedly lose phone service, you will need to notify your provider.

Inform your banks as soon as possible. The fraudster may attempt to make a money transfer online or over the phone and therefore alert the bank so they can stop any unauthorised transactions.

Report to Police Scotland by calling 101.

More

For more advice on cyber scams or keeping yourself safe online, see our other accessible resources:

• British Sign Language Videos
• Easy Read & accessible resources
• Community languages
• My Lead – online learning platform
• Digital.Lead – personal digital safety checklist

Or head to CyberScotland for more advice and guidance.

Cyber Tuesday  

Get more Cyber tips every Tuesday by following us on social media. Find us on:

Facebook @LeadScotland

Instagram @leadscotland

X (previously Twitter) @leadscot_tweet

or LinkedIn @LeadScotland.

For organisations

Lead Scotland are committed to delivering high quality, accessible, and free digital skills and cyber training, especially to disabled people, carers, marginalised groups, and organisations that work with these groups. Let us know what you are interested in and we can organise a session (or more) to make sure you, or the people you support, are safe online. Register your interest in this online form.

Or get in touch for a chat by emailing us at cyberproject@lead.org.uk

Cyber Blog

The post SIM Swapping – Why and how to keep your phone number safe appeared first on Lead Scotland.

← Cyber Blog

Research survey call out – disabled, neurodiverse, blind or visually impaired, D/deaf participants

Skip straight to survey link.

A call-out poster for a research survey by Lead Scotland, seeking disabled, neurodiverse, blind, visually impaired, or D/deaf participants to share cyber crime and online safety experiences. Survey open until 31 March 2026.

As part of our Cyber Project, which delivers accessible learning on cyber and online safety topics, we’re undertaking a small scale research project.

The research results aim to influence the cyber landscape in Scotland in regards to disability and accessibility.

The research will explore disabled people’s experiences with cyber crime and online safety. It will check assumptions about disabled people’s experiences with cyber crime, their confidence and safety online, any support they receive to be safe online, and how they’ve learnt to be safe online.

We are looking for disabled people, neurodiverse people, blind or visually impaired people, D/deaf people or people who have long term physical or mental health conditions to complete a short survey, telling us about their experiences with cyber crime and online safety.

– The survey has 22 questions, and will take about 15 minutes to complete.

– You DO NOT have to have had an experience with cyber crime to complete the survey. 

The survey is open until 31st March 2026

If you would like to take part in the research, please complete the survey which can be found here: https://forms.office.com/e/q97s1hfdXD

Accessible formats

If you would like to complete the survey but require an accessible communication format, please get in touch with us by emailing CyberProject@lead.org.uk or call us on 07920782674.

Questions?

If you have any questions, concerns or queries regarding this research or survey, please contact our Cyber Project team by emailing CyberProject@lead.org.uk or calling us on 07920782674.

For organisations – sharing this survey

If you are an organisation looking to share this survey, we can provide promotional materials to help quickly share this. Contact us via CyberProject@lead.org.uk to request promotional materials.

Survey link: https://forms.office.com/e/q97s1hfdXD

 Cyber Tuesday  

Follow us on social media to get more Cyber tips like this every Tuesday. Find us on:

Facebook @LeadScotland; Instagram @leadscotland; X (previously Twitter) @leadscot_tweet; or LinkedIn @LeadScotland.

For organisations

Lead Scotland are committed to delivering high quality, accessible, and free digital skills and cyber training, especially to disabled people, carers, marginalised groups, and organisations that work with these groups. Let us know what you are interested in and we can organise a session (or more) to make sure you, or the people you support, are safe online. Register your interest in this online form.

Or get in touch for a chat by emailing us at cyberproject@lead.org.uk

Cyber Blog

The post Research survey call out – disabled, neurodiverse, blind or visually impaired, D/deaf participants appeared first on Lead Scotland.

← Cyber Blog

CyberScotland Week 2026

Another year, another successful CyberScotland Week. 

February has been a busy month for our cyber project team. First we were at SCVO’s The Gathering – two days in Edinburgh meeting lots of other voluntary organisations and charities, spreading the word on the CyberScotland partnership. Michael spoke at a panel event, bringing essential cyber learning to 90 people: ‘What I can do to help my organisation stay safe online’. Thanks to Keegan & Pennykid for leading the session, and to SCVO and Coalition for being our co-panellists.

‘What I can do to help my organisation stay safe online’ panel session at The Gathering 2026

And next up, the main event of February…

CyberScotland Week 2026

CyberScotland Week returned for its eighth year from 23 to 28 February 2026. The 2026 theme continued last year’s focus on “Can’t Hack it?!”, highlighting how everyone in Scotland can take simple, practical steps to stay safer online. From individuals and families to small businesses and large organisations, the message is clear: improving cyber resilience does not have to be complicated, but it does require awareness and action.

We held 6 excellent events over five days: 5 webinars and 1 panel session, reaching over 130 people in Scotland.

6 things you can do now to protect your device
Staying safe from phishing
Staying safe on social media
Staying safe from sextortion scams
Staying safe while shopping online

To everyone who came along – thank you for helping keep Scotland cyber resilient. Online security starts with you.

Here’s what our leaners had to say about our webinars:

The common theme running through both CyberScotland Week and The Gathering was the reminder that people are the most important defence in the face of cyber threats. It’s not all up to the cyber professionals and the IT management (although they are very important), we are the strongest armour. So if you attended our CyberScotland Week events, keep spreading the word and the things you learnt. And if you didn’t make it to our webinars, put a reminder in your calendar for this time next year and in the meantime head to our online safety page for resources and learning on online safety: www.lead.org.uk/online-safety

And remember that even the toughest defences can be penetrated by cyber criminals, even if you’re following all the right advice. So if you are ever the victim of cyber crime – stay calm, you’re not alone and it’s not your fault. Call Police Scotland on 101 to report the crime and get the right support.

A cartoon man looking frustrated and angry, with the caption ‘Cyber Criminals after CyberScotland Week 2026’ written above his head.

 Cyber Tuesday  

Follow us on social media to get more Cyber tips like this every Tuesday. Find us on:

Facebook @LeadScotland; Instagram @leadscotland; X (previously Twitter) @leadscot_tweet; or LinkedIn @LeadScotland.

For organisations

Lead Scotland are committed to delivering high quality, accessible, and free digital skills and cyber training, especially to disabled people, carers, marginalised groups, and organisations that work with these groups. Let us know what you are interested in and we can organise a session (or more) to make sure you, or the people you support, are safe online. Register your interest in this online form.

Or get in touch for a chat by emailing us at cyberproject@lead.org.uk

Cyber Blog

The post CyberScotland Week 2026: another year, another success appeared first on Lead Scotland.

← Cyber Blog

Cyber Detectives

Did you know that you can help fight Cyber Crime by being a Cyber Detective?

Watch our video below to discover how to report scammers to the NCSC, and why this can help you stay safe online.

Scroll below the video to read the video transcription.

For best results, click the full screen button at the bottom right of the video. Highlighted in red in the image below.

Video Transcription:

Lead Scotland, Linking education and disability.

Cyber Detectives.

You can catch a scammer by reporting them.

Report scams to the Nation Cyber Security Centre.

The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) is a UK government organisation that has the power to investigate and take down scam email addresses and websites.

The NCSC catches thousands of scammers each year, and you can help.

Report scams to NCSC by sending a screenshot or forwarding emails to report@phishing.gov.uk .

Reporting a scam is free and only takes a minute. By reporting phishing attempts, you can:

1 – Make yourself a harder target for scammers whilst online

2 – Reduce the amount of scams you receive

3 – Protect others in the community, many of whom are vulnerable 

Report scams by sending screenshots or forwarding emails to report@phishing.gov.uk .

Learn more from the National Cyber Security Centre at: www.ncsc.gov.uk/collection/phishing-scams

Or visit Lead.org.uk for more information: www.lead.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Easy-Read-Scam-Spot_F.pdf

Music ‘Sneaky Detective’ by John Bartmann https://freemusicarchive.org/music/John_Bartmann/hide-and-sneak/sneaky-detective

—-

Support if you’ve been scammed

Please note that reporting phishing attempts isn’t the same as reporting a crime. If you think you have been the victim of a cyber crime or scam, contact Police Scotland as soon as possible by calling 111.

Learn more

You can learn more about phishing through any of our free, accessible resources.

You can also read, or listen to our translated language resources here: Community languages – Lead Scotland | Lead Scotland

And you can learn more from the National Cyber Security Centre here: Phishing: Spot and report scam emails, texts, websites and… – NCSC.GOV.UK

Tools to check out

URL Void is a website safety checker. Before you click a link, copy the url here to check that it is safe. If you get a green result, the website is safe to use.

www.urlvoid.com

Ask Silver can help you decide if something is a scam. Send a photo via WhatsApp and receive advice in seconds.

www.ask-silver.com

 Cyber Tuesday  

Follow us on social media to get more Cyber tips like this every Tuesday. Find us on:

Facebook @LeadScotland; Instagram @leadscotland; X (previously Twitter) @leadscot_tweet; or LinkedIn @LeadScotland.

For organisations

Lead Scotland are committed to delivering high quality, accessible, and free digital skills and cyber training, especially to disabled people, carers, marginalised groups, and organisations that work with these groups. Let us know what you are interested in and we can organise a session (or more) to make sure you, or the people you support, are safe online. Register your interest in this online form.

Or get in touch for a chat by emailing us at cyberproject@lead.org.uk

Cyber Blog

The post Cyber Detectives appeared first on Lead Scotland.

← Cyber Blog

Christmas Scammers (stay safe when online shopping)

Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year, don’t let a scam ruin your Christmas.

Watch our video below to discover how to stay safe from scams with online shopping this Christmas.

Scroll below the video to read the video transcription.

For best results, click the full screen button at the bottom right of the video. Highlighted in red in the image below.

Video Transcription:

Beware of scammers this Christmas

Last Christmas £11.8 million was stolen in online fraud

Scammers use time pressures like Christmas Day to pressure you into making a mistake

So take your time when shopping, don’t let scammers spoil Christmas.

1 – Check the website has the correct URL

2 – Check reviews, terms and conditions, and the returns policy

3 – Beware of offers that look too good to be true

4 – Check out as a guest, don’t save your card details to websites 

And if you do create an account, use a strong password and 2-factor authentication.

When expecting deliveries, be cautious of delivery texts and emails. Take time to spot anything suspicious and be wary of clicking links.

And remember, no legitimate banks would ever call to ask for bank details or security information.

Protect yourself, visit: stopthinkfraud.campaign.gov.uk

Music by Alex Productions ‘Christmas Time’. Music promoted by http://onsound.eu/

—-

Learn more

You can learn more about phishing through any of our free, accessible resources.

You can also read, or listen to our translated language resources here: Community languages – Lead Scotland | Lead Scotland

And you can learn more from the National Cyber Security Centre here: Phishing: Spot and report scam emails, texts, websites and… – NCSC.GOV.UK

Tools to check out

URL Void is a website safety checker. Before you click a link, copy the url here to check that it is safe. If you get a green result, the website is safe to use.

www.urlvoid.com

Ask Silver can help you decide if something is a scam. Send a photo via WhatsApp and receive advice in seconds.

www.ask-silver.com

Cyber Tuesday  

Follow us on social media to get more Cyber tips like this every Tuesday. Find us on:

Facebook @LeadScotland; Instagram @leadscotland; X (previously Twitter) @leadscot_tweet; or LinkedIn @LeadScotland.

For organisations

Lead Scotland are committed to delivering high quality, accessible, and free digital skills and cyber training, especially to disabled people, carers, marginalised groups, and organisations that work with these groups. Let us know what you are interested in and we can organise a session (or more) to make sure you, or the people you support, are safe online. Register your interest in this online form.

Or get in touch for a chat by emailing us at cyberproject@lead.org.uk

Cyber Blog

The post Christmas scammers (stay safe when online shopping) appeared first on Lead Scotland.

← Cyber Blog

Shopping season is well and truly here, with Black Friday round the corner and Christmas after that.

For many, online shopping can make shopping easier and more accessible as there’s no need to travel anywhere or carry shopping home, and it’s easier to compare prices online to get good deals.

But of course, it can have it’s downsides and online risks.

Here are 4 things you can do and watch out for to stay safe while online shopping this year.

1 – Use guest checkout

2 – Don’t click links, type or search instead

3 – Be cautious of sellers on social media

4 – Double check websites for anything that doesn’t look quite right

Quick links to more learning: My.Lead course ‘How to shop online safely’ ; Easy Read ‘Shopping online safely’ ; BSL video ‘Shopping Online Securely’

1 – Guest checkout

Most online retailers will steer you towards creating an account when you use their platform to buy things online. Sometimes they’ll even offer you a discount for signing up, or extra benefits like an extended returns policy, to convince you to sign up.

However, this can put your data at risk. Avoid giving away unnecessary personal information by using the Guest Checkout option when shopping online. Especially if it’s a one-off purchase at a retailer you won’t use again.

Top tip: Sometimes the Guest Checkout option isn’t easy to see, instead you’ll be prompted to sign up or login. But take your time to look closely all around the screen and you will eventually see an X, a “skip” button, or a “continue as guest” option that you can click to skip signing up and to checkout as a guest.

And remember – it’s your right to be able to close, cancel or delete accounts with online platforms at any time.

2 – Type don’t click

Around busy shopping times of the year like Black Friday, Cyber Monday and festive periods, we expect to receive emails from online shops and retailers advertising their products, deals and discounts. And we expect to see online adverts from them too. Online adverts will contain links to their website.

But be careful, criminals use fake links and impersonate legitimate businesses. These fake links can carry viruses or other malware to your device, or take you to fake websites where criminals steal your personal information and payment details.

To stay safe from fake links, don’t click links. Instead, go directly to the retailer by searching them in your web browser, typing their web address yourself or opening their app.

3 – Watch out for sellers on Social Media

Social media is a great place for retailers to advertise and sell their products. They can set up pages, get followers and pay for adverts to promote their business.

But social media pages and adverts are easy for anyone to set up, and the social media platforms don’t always check if the businesses are real. Criminals can make pages and ads look convincingly real, but they disappear as soon as money changes hands and you’ll never receive what you’ve paid for.

So if you’ve seen a bargain pop up in your feed, think before you tap. Head to their website through your browser or search engine instead of the ad. And to see if it’s legitimate, can you answer yes to all these questions:

• Has it been active for long?
• Does it have good reviews? And a lot of reviews?
• Are they verified by social media?
• Do they have a returns policy?
• Would you trust them if you went into their shop?

And finally – don’t pay through direct messages, always use a secure payment method on a website.

To learn more about this take our ‘Staying safe on social media’ course on My.Lead, or watch our BSL video ‘ Staying safe on social media’

4 – Double check that website

Always double check the website you are buying from before you put in any personal information or payment details. Even a brand or retailer you trust could be being used by a criminal to impersonate them in a fake website. Criminals copy logos and layouts but slip in small giveaways like spelling mistakes, poor-quality images, or a URL that looks just a little off.

Earlier this year, fake ads for Clarks shoes were found using the domain clarkseushop.com instead of the official .co.uk. Pages like this are designed to fool quick shoppers. Protect yourself by checking URLs closely and only buying from trusted, verified sellers.

Take your time and closely inspect the website for small errors or things that don’t look right.

– Is the web address exactly right?

– Do the images look sharp and professional?

– Are there spelling errors or odd wording?

For more learning on safely online shopping take our My.Lead course ‘How to shop online safely’, watch our BSL video ‘Shopping Online Securely’, or read our EasyRead ‘How to shop online safely’.

Report and support

To report a cybercrime, call Police Scotland on 101.

For more support call Cyber and Fraud Hub on 0808 281 3580.

To report a phishing email, fake advert or fake website send it to report@phishing.gov.uk and forward text messages to 7726.

Getting your money back if you paid by card or PayPal – Citizens Advice

More

For more advice on online shopping, see our accessible resources linked in the above blog learn from the trusted links below.

• Online shopping – Police Scotland
• Shopping and paying safely online – NCSC.GOV.UK
• How to shop online safely | Age UK
• Shopping and paying safely online | MoneyHelper
• Purchase scams | Royal Bank
• Online Shopping – Trading Standards Scotland
• How to spot a fake review – Which?
• Best Black Friday Deals 2025 UK- MoneySavingExpert Analysis

Cyber Tuesday  

Get more Cyber tips every Tuesday by following us on social media. Find us on:

Facebook @LeadScotland

Instagram @leadscotland

X (previously Twitter) @leadscot_tweet

or LinkedIn @LeadScotland.

For organisations

Lead Scotland are committed to delivering high quality, accessible, and free digital skills and cyber training, especially to disabled people, carers, marginalised groups, and organisations that work with these groups. Let us know what you are interested in and we can organise a session (or more) to make sure you, or the people you support, are safe online. Register your interest in this online form.

Or get in touch for a chat by emailing us at cyberproject@lead.org.uk

Cyber Blog

The post Secure Shopping appeared first on Lead Scotland.

← Cyber Blog

Going Phishing?

Phishing is one of the most common and dangerous scams, and it can have a big, negative impact if successful.

Watch our video to discover what phishing is, why it is a risk, and how to stay safe from phishing attempts.

Scroll below the video to read the video transcription.

For best results, click the full screen button at the bottom right of the video. Highlighted in red in the image below.

Video Transcription:

Going Phishing?

Phishing is when cyber criminals try to trick you into revealing personal information to steal from you.

Information like your address, phone number, date of birth, bank details, credit card numbers, and passwords.

The most common phishing attempts are: fake emails, texts, adverts, fake websites.

Scammers can pretend to be someone in authority like: Government agencies, Banks, Crime agencies, Shops or websites.

They use urgency like: A fine that must be paid, an emergency, a situation with a consequence.

They play with your emotions to make you afraid, curious or worried.

Scammers use scarcity like: Something in short supply, Concert tickets, Cures for illness, Something you might miss out on, Current events, Things in the news, Time specific holidays, Time specific things like filing tax returns.

Protect yourself. Do not give out your details to strangers. Hang up and check the number. Check the email or web address is authentic. Be suspicious.

Music, ‘Oedupus’ by Jack Adkins

—-

Report phishing

It’s important to report phishing attempts if you see or receive them, even if you’ve not been a victim of the scam.

• Report phishing emails to report@phishing.gov.uk
• Report phishing texts to 7726
• Report calls to 101
• Report a website to Report a suspicious website – NCSC.GOV.UK

If you think you’ve been the victim of a scam, call Police Scotland on 101.

Call your bank to alert them to stop any payments, or to help you recover any money lost.

And for more support call the Cyber and Fraud Hub on 0808 281 3580 or visit their website: cyberfraudhub.org

Learn more

You can learn more about phishing through any of our free, accessible resources.

You can also read, or listen to our translated language resources here: Community languages – Lead Scotland | Lead Scotland

And you can learn more from the National Cyber Security Centre here: Phishing: Spot and report scam emails, texts, websites and… – NCSC.GOV.UK

Tools to check out

URL Void is a website safety checker. Before you click a link, copy the url here to check that it is safe. If you get a green result, the website is safe to use.

www.urlvoid.com

Ask Silver can help you decide if something is a scam. Send a photo via WhatsApp and receive advice in seconds.

www.ask-silver.com

Cyber Tuesday  

Follow us on social media to get more Cyber tips like this every Tuesday. Find us on:

Facebook @LeadScotland; Instagram @leadscotland; X (previously Twitter) @leadscot_tweet; or LinkedIn @LeadScotland.

For organisations

Lead Scotland are committed to delivering high quality, accessible, and free digital skills and cyber training, especially to disabled people, carers, marginalised groups, and organisations that work with these groups. Let us know what you are interested in and we can organise a session (or more) to make sure you, or the people you support, are safe online. Register your interest in this online form.

Or get in touch for a chat by emailing us at cyberproject@lead.org.uk

Cyber Blog

The post Going phishing? appeared first on Lead Scotland.

← Cyber Blog

One of the best things you can do to keep yourself safe online is to use different passwords for every account, app or website you use.  

It might feel convenient to reuse passwords, but it makes it easy for criminals to access your information. If they crack one password, they’ll use that login everywhere else, from your inbox to your digital wallet.

But with so many day to day activities being online and requiring a password, it is almost impossible to remember every password for all of your accounts. In fact, the average person has 168 passwords to remember according to NordPass in 2024!

How do I remember all my passwords?  

You can use a Password Manager!

Password managers autofill your passwords when you log into accounts, and save new passwords when you create new accounts.

They can also your information using the Cloud. This means you can access it across devices by logging into your account. This is very useful if you use more than one device, like a smartphone and a laptop. Or if you get a new device as the information moves over automatically by just logging into your password manager.

Some examples of password managers are:

• • Google Password Manger – this stores your passwords in your Google account. If you have an Android phone or use Google Chrome as this may be an easy option for you to use.
  • iCloud Keychain – this stores your passwords in your Apple account. If you have an iPhone or Macbook this may be a good option for you to use.
  • Paid password managers like LastPass, NordPass, Bitwarden and more.

So now, you only need to remember one password – the password for you password manager!

Photo by Franck on Unsplash

One VERY SECURE password

Of course, your password manager is protected by a password.

Because your password manger is storing all your very valuable passwords, you need to keep it very safe from criminals or hackers. Here’s what you can do to keep it safe:

1. Use a strong but memorable password – three random words is a good idea. Consider writing the password down and storing that in a very safe place away.

2. Set a recovery method – this could be a phone number, second email address or authenticator app that you get a recovery method sent to if you forget the password for you password manager.

3. Turn on and set up Multifactor Authentication – this is where you receive a text, email or use authenticator app as a second level of security to access you password manager vault. If you password manager is linked to your smartphone you may be able to use biometrics like you fingerprint.

You can also use a passkey to protect your password manager. Learn more about this from our friends at Digital Skills Education: How to Set Up and Use a Passkey (Step-by-Step Guide) | Safe for Work – YouTube

Make sense?

If any of the above doesn’t make sense, or you’re interested in learning more – head to our e-learning platform, My.Lead.org.uk.

To learn more about password managers take our My.Lead course: ‘How to save passwords to the browser’

We have two more courses on passwords. To learn about strong passwords take the ‘How to create a secure password’ course. And to learn about why you should have strong and separate passwords, take our ‘How to protect our emails’ course.

Click the icons below to go straight to these courses.

Cyber: How to save passwords to the browser

Cyber: How to protect our emails

Cyber: How to create a secure password

BSL, Easy Read and Translated learning

You can also find more learning through our BSL videos 

• For password managers watch BSL Video ‘Save your passwords to your browser’ here
• For strong passwords watch BSL Video ‘Create a strong password with 3 random words’ here
• For why you should have strong and separate passwords BSL Video ‘Use a separate password for your email account’ here

For an Easy Read guide about strong passwords and password managers read our ‘6 things to do now to stay safe online‘ Easy Read.

Or check out our translated language resources here.

Cyber Tuesday  

Get more Cyber tips every Tuesday by following us on social media. Find us on:

Facebook @LeadScotland

Instagram @leadscotland

X (previously Twitter) @leadscot_tweet

or LinkedIn @LeadScotland.

For organisations

Lead Scotland are committed to delivering high quality, accessible, and free digital skills and cyber training, especially to disabled people, carers, marginalised groups, and organisations that work with these groups. Let us know what you are interested in and we can organise a session (or more) to make sure you, or the people you support, are safe online. Register your interest in this online form.

Or get in touch for a chat by emailing us at cyberproject@lead.org.uk

Cyber Blog

The post Passwords – How do I remember them all? appeared first on Lead Scotland.

Click Safe. Travel smart. 

Sharing holiday photos and plans online

When you’re on holiday or way from home, do you take pictures to remember the moment later?

If you do, you’re not alone. Lots of people take photos when they are away and share them on social media. It’s good way to keep track of what you’ve been up to, like a digital photo album. It’s also a great way of sharing what you’ve been up to with your family and friends.

Sometimes people don’t share pictures but they might write a post to share where they are and what they’ve been doing. Or they might ‘check-in’ or like a place or activity online.

Sharing holiday plans online can make your home a target for burglars and alert scammers to your absence. It may also make you vulnerable to identity theft if too much personal detail is shared.

These posts or pictures add to your Digital Footprint.

What is a Digital Footprint?

Your Digital Footprint is made up of the information you leave anytime you go online. This can include posts on social media, online purchases, website visits, and other interactions on the internet. If you have ever done anything online, you have a digital footprint.

So when you post your holiday photos on social media you are adding to your Digital Footprint.

Do you know who can see your posts, pictures and profile information? You can find this out in your Privacy Settings. This also impacts your Digital Footprint.

So how should I share my holiday photos online?

Top tips for posting about your trips away from home: 

• Don’t post when you’re away, wait till you’re home 

• Check your privacy settings on social media – do you know who can see you what you’re posting? Are you posting public or just to people you know and trust? 

• Turn off location tagging and dates on your public posts 

How can I learn more about my Digital Footprint?

To learn more about your Digital Footprint, take our short My.Lead course Cyber: Looking after our digital footprint – Lead Scotland 

Read our EasyRead Easy-Read-Social-media.pdf 

Watch our BSL video Staying safe on social media – YouTube 

For more advice about holiday scams: Stay safe and secure your summer – Cyber Scotland  

Or keep an eye on our social media as we share more top tips this summer.  

Follow us on Facebook , Instagram @leadscotland or LinkedIn. 

Click to go back to the first #SecureSummer overview post

For organisations

Lead Scotland are committed to delivering high quality, accessible, and free digital skills and cyber training, especially to disabled people, carers, marginalised groups, and organisations that work with these groups. Let us know what you are interested in and we can organise a session (or more) to make sure you, or the people you support, are safe online. Register your interest in this online form.

Or get in touch for a chat by emailing us at cyberproject@lead.org.uk

The post #SecureSummer – Digital Footprint – Posting on social media when you’re away from home – 5 of 5 appeared first on Lead Scotland.

Click Safe. Travel smart. 

If you’ve booked a holiday this summer – stay alert, and double check every email from your travel company, accommodation or airline to make sure it’s not a phishing email. That email could be a phishing email. 

What is phishing?

Phishing is a type of scam when cyber criminals try to trick you into revealing sensitive information like passwords, credit card numbers, personal information or bank details. 

A common type of phishing is to pretend to be a well-known company so that you will trust an email, text or phone call and reveal your information. 

Scammers send convincing emails that appear to come from legitimate travel companies, asking for confirmation, payment, or even login credentials. These phishing emails can lead to stolen data or financial loss. 

How can I stay safe from phishing scams?

Here’s some top tips to stay safe around Phishing emails: 

• Are you expecting an email? If you’ve just paid for a holiday online, it’s normal to receive an email from the company to confirm the holiday or send a receipt or invoice. This is an expected email. If you receive an email out of the blue from a travel company, this is unexpected. 

• Never click links or download attachments from unexpected emails. If in doubt, go directly to the companies official website to verify bookings. 

• Check the email address of whoever sent the email. Do you recognise it? Can you search your previous, trusted emails to see if they’ve sent you an email before? 

• Even if you do trust the sender, are you expecting an email from then and does it sound like them? This one can be hard to work out as cyber criminals can use AI to write emails that sound very legitimate and in the style of the company the are pretending to be. 

• Be suspicious – If anything doesn’t feel quite right, it probably isn’t. 

How can I learn more about staying safe from phishing scams?

You can learn more about Phishing by reading our EasyRead Easy-Read-Scam-Spot_F.pdf. 

Enrol with My.Lead to learn more about keeping your accounts safe online

Or watching our BSL video on Staying safe from phishing scams 

Here’s some other advice about phishing scams: Phishing: Spot and report scam emails, texts, websites and… – NCSC.GOV.UK 

Or keep an eye on our social media as we share more top tips this summer.  

Follow us on Facebook , Instagram @leadscotland or LinkedIn. 

Click for the next post in our #SecureSummer series

Click to go back to the first #SecureSummer overview post

For organisations

Lead Scotland are committed to delivering high quality, accessible, and free digital skills and cyber training, especially to disabled people, carers, marginalised groups, and organisations that work with these groups. Let us know what you are interested in and we can organise a session (or more) to make sure you, or the people you support, are safe online. Register your interest in this online form.

Or get in touch for a chat by emailing us at cyberproject@lead.org.uk

The post #SecureSummer – Phishing Emails – emails pretending to be legitimate travel companies – 4 of 5 appeared first on Lead Scotland.