The short answer
Never click the link in the message. Go to the organisation yourself, by typing the address or using the app you already have, and check from there.
- Urgency is the tell. Account suspended, payment failed, act within 24 hours. That pressure exists to stop you thinking.
- Check the sender address properly, not the display name, which is trivially faked.
- Hover over links before clicking and read where they actually go. On a phone, press and hold.
- Banks, HMRC and the DVLA do not ask for passwords or full card details by email or text.
- When in doubt, go to the organisation independently. Type the address, or ring the number on your card rather than the number in the message.
What will ruin it
The most convincing scams arrive as a phone call after the email, from somebody claiming to be your bank's fraud team, asking you to move money to a "safe account". No bank will ever ask you to do that. It is always a scam.
Why it works
Phishing works by borrowing an existing trusted relationship and adding time pressure. Independently reaching the organisation breaks both parts at once, which is why it is the only rule worth memorising.
Tipking is general household information, not professional advice. Test anything on a hidden patch first. Full disclaimer.
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