What is spam or phishing?

Discover everything you need to know about spam and phishing, how to spot it and what to do about it with iD Mobile.  

Spam is unwanted SMS messages or junk emails sent out in bulk to a recipient list. Sometimes spam can contain malicious attempts to gain access to your phone or computer.  

Phishing is a type of cyber-attack used by criminals to try and steal important personal and financial information from you or to infect your machine with malware or viruses. They often disguise themselves as reputable sources like your bank, HMRC or the post office. This can be done by text, email or over the phone.  

You’ll want to be on the lookout for any suspicious emails or texts that refer to you as an email address or anything other than your correct name – keep an eye out for obvious spelling mistakes too. Incorrect spelling and poor grammar are usually the first red flag that you’re being phished. 

Another way to spot a phishing message is anything that contains grand claims that you’ve won money or prizes. If it sounds too good to be true, it usually is.  

Within a phishing text or email, it’ll usually ask you to do something urgently, such as click a link, call a number or respond to a message. You may receive warnings pop up on your screen. It’s best to treat this as an indication that the content in your email or text is not safe. For example, iD Mobile will never send an SMS with a short URL (it will always be the full URL starting: “idmobile.co.uk/”), nor ask a customer to make a payment by clicking a link. 

Here at iD Mobile, we will always provide you with payment options and will include a link to My Account online where you can check if you have any outstanding payments.

It can be hard to identify a fake website, as imposters can easily copy content from the real website they are impersonating. Here are a few things you can look out for to spot a phishing website: 

• Double check the URL of the link you’ve been sent 

If you’re worried about a link, check the hosting name, website domain or URL for spelling mistakes. Always ensure the URL includes “https://” as if there is a letter missing, it usually means something isn’t right.  

• Search the URL  

If you’ve been sent a link that you think is suspicious, it’s safer to use a trusted search engine like Google and access the website directly.  

• Watch out for non-secure sites  

Check if the website has a padlock to the left of the URL. If it does, always click on it to find out information on site security certificates, cookies and settings.  

• Look for spelling, grammar and design errors 

While some phishing websites will do everything they can to ensure their site looks professional, incorrect spelling, grammar and sentence structure is a tell-tale sign that the website isn’t what it seems to be.  

There are a few ways to understand if it is iD Mobile or not. Firstly, we will never use a short URL, and you should always see our full address starting with “idmobile.co.uk/”. Secondly, at iD Mobile, we will never ask you to disclose your personal information via text, or by clicking a link. This information includes your password or bank details. Instead, we will always direct you to the iD Mobile App or My Account online via the iD Mobile Website. Here you can check if you have any outstanding balances that you need to pay.  

If you want further clarification about whether an iD Mobile SMS is genuine, get in touch with our team via Live Chat.  

If you have spotted a scam, do not do anything the message asks you to do. This could include replying to the email or text message, phoning the number, downloading content or clicking on the links.  

Report all suspicious messages. If it is a text message, forward it on to 7726, and our security team will open an investigation right away.  

If you think you are experiencing fraudulent calls, text CALL to the same number to report a nuisance call.  

After you have reported it, delete the suspicious message.  

If you are concerned that you have experienced a phishing attack, the best way to let us know is to forward the message to 7726, which will report it to action fraud for you. You can also let us know by posting on the iD Community page.