Scam or real? 60-second race
20 texts land on your lock screen and the clock is running. Swipe left for scam, right for real. Scammers count on you deciding in a hurry. Let's see what a hurry costs.
The 5-second check
You don't need to be slow. You just need to look at three things before you act.
- 1. Where does the link really go?Read the part just before the first single "/". A real name with extra words or hyphens bolted on is a different website.
- 2. Is it asking for a code?A one-time code is for you to type, never to send. Anyone who asks for it, a "bank" or a "friend", is trying to get into your account.
- 3. Is it rushing or tempting you?"Tonight", "24 hours", a prize you never entered, easy money from home. Pressure is the trick, not the message.
- Real texts are often boringThey tell you something, then tell you to use the app or the number you already have. Even a scary one, like a card alert, sends you to the number on your card, not to a link.
If a text got you
Close it. If it might be real, open the official app or call the number you already know.
Report it through your police app or the eCrime platform (ecrime.ae), then block the sender.
Call your bank now on the number on the back of your card and freeze the card.
If someone is threatening you or you feel unsafe, call 999.
Every text here is invented. All banks, couriers, shops, clinics and phone numbers are fictional, and every link ends in .example, a name reserved for examples that can never be a real website. No real logos are used. The scam types follow public warnings from UAE police forces and the UAE Cyber Security Council: fake parcel fees, fake fines, prizes and points, fake jobs, "family emergency" texts and requests for one-time codes. The advice to stop and check because scammers rely on urgency follows the UK National Cyber Security Centre's guidance on suspicious messages. The fast-versus-slow numbers are your own, from this round. Game by Mariam Alzaabi.