Friends Against Scams
Friends Against Scams is a National Trading Standards (NTS) Scams Team initiative, which aims to protect and prevent people from becoming victims of scams by empowering local communities to "Take a Stand Against Scams".
Scams affect the lives of millions of people across the UK. People who are scammed are often too embarrassed to speak up and can experience loneliness and social isolation.
Friends Against Scams is designed to inspire action; highlight the scale of the problem; change the perceptions of why people fall for scams and make scams a community, regional and national talking point.
Anyone can join Friends Against Scams and make a difference in their own way.
You can become a Friend Against Scams by completing the Friends Against Scams online learning (which takes approximately 20 minutes), where you will learn about the different types of scams and how to spot and support a victim. With increased knowledge and awareness, you can then make the subject of scams part of everyday conversation with your family, friends and neighbours, which will enable them to also protect themselves and others from scams.
As a Friend Against Scams, you will be asked to make a simple ‘pledge’ to turn the knowledge you have gained about scams into action.
Here are a few ideas to get you started:
- tell five people about the Friends Against Scams initiative
- educate and talk to others about scams
- share your Friends Against Scams status on social media
- sign up to our scam alerts and share these with your family and friends
- look out for people who may be at risk of being a scam victim in your community
- make a difference to someone's life by getting in touch (and staying in touch) with someone who has been a victim of a scam