How to Avoid False Information in an Emergency

In an emergency, the first false message is often the one that reaches you fastest. A forwarded text about a dam bursting, a screenshot of a "government warning", an email demanding money: all of them spread because people are frightened and want to help. The defence is simple and it is the same every time. Go to the official source, check the alert there, and only then act or share.

The official sources are named and public. Pay attention to the websites and social media accounts of local authorities, government agencies and the emergency services, and to messages to your mobile phone from the UK Government Emergency Alerts Service¹. You can check whether an Emergency Alert is genuine at gov.uk/alerts². If you are still unsure, contact neighbours, friends or family in the nearby area to see whether they received it too³.

The rest is habits. Treat any message that asks you for details, a click or a payment as a scam until proved otherwise, because the Emergency Alerts service will never send you emails or ask you to provide personal details⁴. Check before you share, because some information online is misleading and inaccurate, making it harmful to share with friends and family¹. And protect your accounts, so that a false message cannot be sent in your name.

Check the official source before you believe a warning

Every false warning fails the same test: it cannot be found where the real ones live. Official sources include the websites and social media accounts of the emergency services, government agencies and local councils, plus local radio, TV and the internet⁹. In winter, for example, Norfolk and Suffolk residents are pointed to updates from the NHS, local councils, the Met Office, the Environment Agency, Norfolk Prepared and Suffolk Prepared for information about health services, weather warnings, flooding and local support¹⁰. That is the shape of a trustworthy chain: a named body, on its own channel, saying what it is saying.

For phone alerts, the check is a single address. Visit gov.uk/alerts for more information and to check that an alert is genuine². The same advice is repeated by councils across Wales and England, which tell residents they will be able to check an alert is genuine at gov.uk/alerts¹¹. If you cannot confirm it there, treat it as unconfirmed.

For weather and flooding, go to the forecasters and the environment bodies directly. Sign up to Met Office weather warnings so that warnings reach you from the source rather than second hand¹². The Environment Agency publishes flood warnings and the practical advice that goes with them, including turning off your gas, electricity and water supplies if it is safe to do so¹³. Our guide to where to get official warnings and news in an emergency sets out the channels in more detail, and Emergency Alerts: how the UK phone warning system works explains what a real alert looks and sounds like.

How to tell whether a warning is real before you share it

A real warning tells you what to do and who is telling you. A false one usually tells you to pass it on. Before you act on a message, ask the four questions official guidance sets out: who shared it, is it a trustworthy source, is it fact or opinion, and is it up to date¹⁴. A screenshot with no date fails the last one immediately, and a message that has travelled through five group chats fails the first.

Then check the content against what the official advice would be. In a flood, official guidance is to turn off gas, electricity and water if it is safe to do so, and to avoid flood water at all costs¹³. A message urging you to drive through water to collect supplies is not just false, it is dangerous. In any emergency, the official instruction is to check for injuries and help yourself before attempting to help others, to follow the advice of the emergency services, and not to put yourself or others in danger¹⁶. A warning that pushes you towards risk is not a warning.

Keep listening once you have checked. Watch TV, listen to the radio or check the internet often for official news and instructions as they become available¹⁷. The situation changes, and a warning that was accurate an hour ago may have been superseded.

If you are driving or riding when an alert sounds, do not read or respond to it while driving or riding a vehicle; find somewhere safe and legal to stop before picking up your phone and reading the message¹⁹. It is illegal to hold a mobile phone while driving, so continue driving and find somewhere safe and legal to stop before reading the message²⁰.

Scam messages that use an emergency to get your details

Criminals may take advantage of emergencies by sharing scams or false information, so keep your devices and personal information secure²¹. The pattern is predictable: a crisis makes people expect contact from authority, and the scam arrives dressed as authority.

The Emergency Alerts service gives the clearest test of all. The government does not need your phone number or any of your details to send you an alert, and the Emergency Alerts service will never send you emails or ask you to provide personal details⁴. Alerts are one-way: they do not provide any feedback on your location or whether you have received an alert, and no data is being gathered about you, your phone or your location¹¹. So an email, a text reply or a phone call asking you to confirm anything "for the alert service" is a scam, whatever it says.

Bogus callers follow the same logic at the door and on the phone. Belfast City Council's advice is to avoid falling victim to a scam by being aware of the warning signs and reporting any concerns you may have²². If you have been scammed, or think someone is attempting to scam you or someone you know, report it²².

Sextortion emails are a common form of this. Criminals send millions of emails in the hope that someone will pay⁵. The advice is not to engage with the criminal; if you are unsure about an email, forward it to the NCSC's Suspicious Email Reporting Service and then delete it⁵. Do not reply, do not pay, and do not click.

Rumours on social media, and how to handle them

Social media is genuinely useful in an emergency, and official bodies use it. The problem is that it carries facts and opinions side by side. The internet and social media are full of both, and some information you find online can be misleading and inaccurate, making it harmful to share with friends and family¹. The instruction is blunt: avoid creating more confusion by spreading rumours or unconfirmed information¹⁴.

The practical rule is to share the source, not the screenshot. If a neighbour posts that a road is closed, look for the police or council post that says so, and share that instead. If there is no such post, wait. Our guide to community resilience explains how a street or building group can be a reliable channel rather than a rumour mill.

A closed group of people you actually know is different from an open feed. Swap contact details with neighbours and consider creating an instant messaging group or other closed online social network for your street or building, which is an important source of information and support during an emergency²³. In a closed group you know who is speaking and why they would know.

Keep the official channels in the mix. Go in, stay in, tune in remains the core advice: keeping safe is important, and tuning in to your local radio station as well as using social media gives you both the official line and the local detail²⁴. For pets and animals, pay attention to public information about current emergency situations on local news bulletins or local multi-agency partners' social media accounts²⁵. And keep up to date with the news through radio, TV, social media and the internet²⁶.

Protect your accounts so false messages cannot be sent in your name

A hijacked email account is a false-information machine. Cyber criminals can use your email to access many of your personal accounts, leaving you vulnerable to identity theft²⁷. If a criminal accesses your email, they could use it to access all your other accounts, access information about you including banking and social media details, and send emails and messages pretending to be from you²⁸. In an emergency, a message from your address saying "I am stranded, please send money" is far more likely to be believed.

The defences are ordinary and take minutes:

• Use a strong and separate password for your email, because it is the key to so much else²⁷.
• Turn on two-step verification, which is recommended to help protect your online accounts⁸.
• Be vigilant to phishing emails, text messages and phone calls, and keep all software and systems up to date, including mobile phones²⁹.

If an account is hacked, tell contacts, friends or followers linked to the hacked account that you were hacked and warn them to be suspicious of recent messages from your account³⁰. When you contact your bank for support, do not use the links in any messages you have been sent³⁰. Our guide to cyber attacks and major IT failures covers what to do when the problem is wider than one account.

After a data breach, the organisation should be able to confirm if a breach has actually occurred, how you are affected and what else you need to do³¹. Be alert for suspicious messages afterwards, as cyber criminals may try to take advantage of it³¹. Change the password on the affected account and turn on two-step verification if you have not already.

Where to report false information and get help

Reporting is quick, and it protects other people as much as you.

Report Fraud deals with all fraud, unless the suspect is known to the victim or is vulnerable, in which case call 101⁶. The number is 0300 123 2040⁶. If at any time you feel unsafe or unsure, call 999 for further information and advice³². If you see anyone setting deliberate fires, call the police on 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111³³.

If you cannot speak on the phone, register for emergencySMS now rather than waiting for an emergency, and do not assume your message has been received until the emergency service sends a message back³⁴. Our guide to emergencySMS explains how to register.

For people who need extra help, the same official channels apply. In a serious emergency where there is a risk of serious harm to human life, it should be assumed that it is lawful to share personal data if it is necessary to do so to respond to that emergency³⁵, so do not let a concern about privacy stop you asking for help for someone who needs it. Our guide to extra help in an emergency sets out the support available.