Phishing alert – Fake messages often appear legitimate, flooding inboxes and phones with urgent prompts to click suspicious links.
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If you’ve ever received a dodgy email that almost looked like it came from your bank or a delivery company, you’re not imagining things.
Those suspicious messages are part of a scam that’s become incredibly common in Spain — and according to the OCU (Spain’s leading consumer rights group), it’s still fooling thousands of people.
The scam is called phishing — fittingly named because cybercriminals are essentially ‘fishing’ for your personal and financial information. The trick? They pretend to be someone you trust. It might be a bank, the tax office, or even a friend. Their goal is simple: get you to click on a link or open an attachment. Just one click can expose your passwords, install malicious software on your device, or give someone access to your private information.
And phishing has grown up. It’s no longer just clumsy emails with obvious spelling mistakes. These days, the messages look sharp and professional, sometimes copying real logos, email signatures or urgent phrases that push you to act fast. Some even show up as text messages — that version is called smishing — or through WhatsApp. The scammers can get creative, telling you you’ve won something, asking you to verify a payment, or pretending to be the tax agency needing a quick update on your details during the declaration season. Sounds believable, right? That’s the point.
The OCU says this is now the number one scam in the country, and it’s easy to see why it works. In a world where we’re used to tapping through dozens of messages a day, slowing down to question a familiar-looking notification doesn’t always happen. And that’s exactly when people get caught out.
How to recognise a phishing scam before it’s too late
But there are signs to watch for. Often, the sender’s email address will be a giveaway — full of strange characters or off by just one letter. Sometimes the language feels a bit off, mixing Spanish and English in odd ways or throwing in a lot of urgency. If the message says something like ‘act now’ or ‘offer ends today’, it’s probably a scam trying to rush you into a mistake.
According to a recent survey, 45 per cent of people in Spain say they’ve already fallen victim to a cyber scam, and nearly everyone else — 44 per cent — says they’ve at least been targeted. In total, that means nearly 9 out of 10 people have come face-to-face with some form of online fraud. That’s massive.
Email scams remain the most common, but not by much. Fake phone calls and WhatsApp messages are right behind. It’s getting harder to know who to trust, and a growing number of people are reacting by avoiding the internet altogether — or at least keeping their personal details to themselves. In fact, almost 90 per cent of people in the survey said they now limit what they share online for safety reasons.
Online safety tips to protect your data from fraud
The biggest fears? Hackers accessing private data, stealing identities or draining bank accounts. And for many, there’s also a real concern about getting scammed while shopping online — especially with deals that seem too good to be true.
So, what’s the takeaway here? Stay curious, stay cautious, and never hand over your information without being sure who’s asking. If something feels off, it probably is. And if you’re not sure, go straight to the official source — not the link in the message. In today’s world, a little scepticism can save you a lot of money.
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