Safer Internet Day 2025: How to protect yourself from scams
Safer Internet Day is marked every year in the UK, and it's all about staying safe online.The day is themed around a different topic each year, and for 2025 the theme is Too good to be true? Protecting yourself and others from scams online.It's taking place on Tuesday 11th February 2025 and is run by the UK Safer Internet Centre, who work with young people to provide tips about how to stay safe online. But what are scams, and how can you protect yourself from them?
What are scams?
Scams are tricks to get people to pay money or reveal personal information like passwords or bank details.Often, these scams happen online, and may include things like setting up fake giveaways or selling misleading products. Scams can also include something called phishing. This is where someone is tricked into clicking on an unsafe link in a fake message, email or social media post that pretends to be something it's not in order to gain a person's trust.This could look like a message from a company or public service you use or know well.Most scams are targeted at adults, but some are aimed at children too. For example, some young people have been tricked into unfair trades like giving items away on gaming platforms, and social media scams have also deceived younger users.
How can you spot a scam?
The UK Safer Internet Centre has lots of advice for children on Safer Internet Day in order to stay scam-safe in 2025.Make sure that you look out for signs that something can't be trusted:If something sounds too good to be true (like an in-game trade or social media giveaway) then it might be. Don't share personal information online and remember that not everyone can be trusted in games or online.Watch out for phishing and don't click on a links from unexpected messages, even if it looks like someone you know or a company you've heard of.Always speak to a trusted adult if you're worried about something you see online, or if you think you might have been scammed.
What's happening for Safer Internet Day 2025?
BBC Teach will be showing a special Safer Internet Day Live Lesson from 11am on Tuesday 11th February, online and on the CBBC channel. They'll be playing a Scam Smashers game, which your class can take part in, to try and use detective skills to beat the scammers. The UK Safer Internet Centre also want to use the day to think about questions for the future of online safety, like what effect artificial intelligence (AI) might have on scams, and what the government can do to tackle this.
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BBC News
11-02-2025
- BBC News
Almost half of children in Wales scammed online, research shows
More than 40% of children in Wales have been scammed online, according to new findings by the UK Safer Internet Centre have been released to mark Safer Internet at Griffithstown Primary School, in Pontypool, Torfaen, are teaching pupils aged between seven and 11 about recognising Thomas, a teacher leading the class, said it is important to "prepare" the children at a young age so they are less susceptible to a scam in the future. Ms Thomas said children are "more likely" to be the victim of an online scam as we "enter a more digital age"."If it is too good to be true then it probably is. Manipulative language, the use of emotive language, or saying that they are in trouble on the scam," she said the aim of the class is not to make "pupils panic", but to ensure that they remain calm when faced with a scammer."Never reveal any personal information. If they are unsure they can talk to a trusted adult in school, and outside of school," Ms Thomas added. Ms Thomas said Artificial Intelligence (AI) is something that teachers now have to be "mindful" about in a school setting."Just making sure that pupils are aware of what is real and what is fake so they know how to stay safe with this emerging technology," she half of teenagers feel that online scams are getting more convincing, and around a third of young people worry that the use of new technology, such as AI, will make scams much harder to identify, the research people are most commonly becoming victims of fake giveaways often tricking people into sharing personal information and online shopping scams. Oliver, 10, is a pupil at the school and has been given an exercise focusing on an offer about a computer game."It says click here for unlimited Roblox tokens and then says 10,000 tokens. So that's misinformation and normally when something sounds too good to be true, it is too good to be true," he said. Lyra, also 10, said you should "always think" about what you are doing when you are onlineMore than 80% of children aged between eight and 17 spot a scam at least one a month, according to the also found scams can impact victims emotionally with many people, including children, blaming themselves. Headteacher Nick Blackburn said it is "important" for his pupils to know what a scam looks like."There are so many traps out there that they could fall into. It's important we show them all the opportunities that ensure that they are safe," he are calls for more support to tackle online crime and help young people stay safe of the UK Safer Internet Centre Will Gardner said "education is key".The centre is now focusing on supporting intergenerational learning, for children, parents and carers."For too long, young people have been overlooked, yet our research clearly demonstrates how much of an impact online scams can have on them," he said.
BBC News
11-02-2025
- BBC News
'Too good to be true' deals may be scams, Guernsey police warn
People in Guernsey have been warned to treat deals that seem "too good to be true" as possible scams by the island's Police released the advice for Safer Internet Day on force advised people to be sceptical of deals, prizes or investment opportunities that promised "high returns with little risk".Laura Simpson, from the high tech crime unit, said criminals were using cutting-edge tools like artificial intelligence (AI) to create "highly-convincing" scams. Scams created with generative AI, which can create realistic written text, images and videos, can be much harder for people to spot compared to more old-fashioned spam and scams, she Simpson said deepfake AI technology, which creates convincing images or videos of real people, could "create sexualised images from innocent pictures shared on social media", which could then be used to blackmail victims. Spotting and avoiding scams Police said people should follow these steps to help spot potential Messages: Be wary of unexpected emails, texts, or social media messages, especially those asking for personal information or moneyToo Good to Be True: Offers that seem too good to be true often are. Be sceptical of deals, prizes, or investment opportunities that promise high returns with little riskUrgency and Pressure: Scammers often create a sense of urgency, pressuring you to act quickly. Take your time to verify the legitimacy of the requestSuspicious Links and Attachments: Avoid clicking on links or downloading attachments from unknown sources. These can contain malware or lead to phishing websitesThey also said people should use these techniques to help them avoid the Source: Always verify the identity of the person or organization contacting you. Use official contact information from their website, not the details provided in the messageUse Strong Passwords: Create strong, unique passwords for your online accounts and enable two-factor authentication where possibleKeep Software Updated: Ensure your devices and software are up to date with the latest security patchesEducate Yourself: Stay informed about common scams and how they operate. Knowledge is your best defencePolice said anyone who suspected they had been the victim of a scam should contact them as well as their bank and the website or app they used.
The Independent
11-02-2025
- The Independent
Adult content and radicalisation – the sinister realities of the Online Safety Act
As the Online Safety Act begins its phased implementation, the UK government claims the legislation will create a safer digital world for children. While well intended, in reality, the OSA will likely do the opposite. The legislation is fundamentally flawed – introducing loopholes that children will easily exploit while simultaneously threatening free speech and burdening small online communities with disproportionate liabilities. As we mark Safer Internet Day, it's important that we understand the consequences of the dangerously flawed new law. One of the most touted aspects of the Online Safety Act is the mandatory age verification for sites hosting adult content. Yet, this measure is doomed to fail. VPNs, proxy services, adult sites outside of the UK, and the dark web all allow minors to effortlessly bypass the OSA restrictions. Even worse, the OSA restrictions are likely to effectively encourage minors to use sites far more dangerous than those hosted in the UK. The very users the OSA seeks to protect – the tech-savvy younger generation – will be the first to find their way around it. However, what is even more concerning is that the youngest and most vulnerable users, those too young to understand or bypass these measures, will still be at risk. Pre-teens, who should be better protected by any online safety legislation, will remain unprotected as easily available adult material continues to filter down. Just as we saw with previous attempts to regulate online content, younger children will still stumble across harmful material, if not be directed to dangerous venues like the dark web via their peers – despite the false sense of protection that comes with the OSA. On the flip-side, OSA puts adults at risk as they must provide personal data, and at times biometric information, to parties to whom they have no prior relationship and whose security practices are as of yet, effectively untested. Besides the obvious risk of attackers stealing data from the age verification (AV) providers, there is little doubt that cyber criminals will take advantage of the situation by setting up phishing sites that impersonate AV services. We saw how well criminals impersonated fake parcel delivery services during Covid and how many billions of dollars have been lost to phishing attacks over the years – why give them another opportunity to employ these ruthless tactics against innocent people? This is, after all, a dynamic already scripted by other restrictive measures, from online gambling bans to restrictions on pirated content. When it comes to online access, determined users always find workarounds; minors being no exception. The illusion of safety created by these age verification mandates does not translate into real world protection. While parents will be lulled into a false sense of security, their children will be left exposed whilst accessing dangerous, and potentially illegal, content. Perhaps even more concerning is the overreach of this legislation. This law does not just apply to major platforms like Facebook, but extends to any platform that facilitates user-to-user engagement – including small community forums, hobbyist groups, and even local church discussion boards. This means that countless website owners and moderators, including those who are working for organisations dedicated to protecting children, who have no legal teams or compliance departments, will suddenly find themselves potentially facing massive multi-million-pound fines. Many wonderful organisations, and providers of valuable information and services to they community at large may be forced to cease operations out of a fear of unintentionally violating the Act. All of this damage will occur whilst the threats to minors continue to exist – if not become worse. Sadly, this is already happening. Take, for example, the LFGSS, a completely benign, child-friendly community cycling forum, which is closing down due to the overwhelming burden placed on it by the Online Safety Act. If a discussion board for bike enthusiasts is at risk, how many other small communities will vanish for nothing? This is not just speculation – it is already happening. Many small forums, church groups, and niche online communities may face the same fate and be forced to close rather than take on the high costs of compliance with the OSA – costs that can be prohibitive for small operators even if OSA was intended to target only Silicon Valley giants and platforms hosting adult content. This could disproportionately impact hundreds of thousands of perfectly benign websites in the UK. If the goal is truly to protect children, there are far more effective and proportionate solutions: filtering and device-level checks. Instead of placing the burden on individual websites, parents should keep control of what their children access online. Parental control software, operating system-level restrictions, and internet service provider-level filtering are vastly superior and precise compared to the blunt instrument of the Online Safety Act and the best efforts of Ofcom – the designated regulator that, despite considerable expenditure, simply doesn't have the tools for the job. In addition to filtering, device-level checks represent yet another much safer and much more effective way to protect minors from other threats, such as communications from would-be-abusers or the like, by setting their device to deliver an age-appropriate online experience. This can be achieved without the need for any sensitive information to be divulged throughout the web, whilst shielding minors from content deemed for adults. By shifting responsibility to individual websites instead of empowering parents, guardians and minors, the path currently chosen by the government is ineffective, worse than the cure that it purports to provide, and exposes internet users to dangers. Governments that support any such age verification mandates are setting themselves up for a risky political gamble. The OSA is not a step forward; it's a dangerous misstep destined to fail. The unintended consequences of the OSA will soon become apparent: minors will still access harmful content; perfectly benign online forums will disappear; precious sensitive data will be disseminated throughout the web and exposed; and free speech will be eroded and the most dangerous online risks to minors. Such as communications from would-be abusers in their physical locations, access to illegal drugs and weapons sold via the dark web, and recruitment attempts by extremist groups, will remain completely unaddressed. While the OSA may give elected officials bragging rights that they are protecting children, the law – and those supporting it – are, in reality, making the internet more dangerous for the children of the United Kingdom. Joseph Steinberg is a US cyber security expert.
