Following the recent ‘ransomware’ attack the National Cyber Security Centre is advising home users and small businesses to take the following steps to protect themselves by:
– Install system and application updates on all devices as soon as they become available.
– Make sure your antivirus software is up to date and run a scan.
– Create regular backups of your important files to an external hard drive or cloud.
– Do not click on any link in an email unless you are fully confident of its authenticity.
Last year the UK lost £2 million each day in financial fraud. As a result, Financial Fraud Action UK are asking consumers to help protect themselves by:
– Never disclosing security details, such as your PIN or password – it’s never right to reveal these details.
– Not assuming an email request or caller is genuine – people aren’t always who they say they are.
– Not being rushed – a bank or genuine organisation won’t mind waiting to give you time to stop and think.
– Listening to your instincts – if something feels wrong then it is usually right to pause and question it.
– Staying in control – having the confidence to refuse unusual requests for information.
Since the beginning of the year Suffolk Trading Standards have received complaints from residents who own solar panels, with companies claiming they have an energy saving device that will save them money, or offering to check their ‘system’ for free!
Suffolk Trading Standards have also had reports of door-to-door salesmen offering cheap chainsaws and generators. Please be especially cautious of any individual who approaches you and offers to sell you something. Trust your instincts – If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is! Goods sold in this way may be stolen, counterfeit or unsafe. Please use the following link to report any suspicious activity:
https://www.suffolk.police.uk/contact-us/report-something/report-crime but use 999 in an emergency when an immediate police response is required.
Following a series of daytime burglaries in West Suffolk the Police are advising residents to:
– Keep your front door locked even when you are at home and especially if you are in the back garden.
(30% of burglaries in Suffolk result from an unlocked door or open window.)
– Use timer switches for lights if you are away on holiday to make your home look as if it is occupied.
– Never leave spare keys in a hiding place. Burglars will check under objects such as a garden gnome.
For more advise see the Suffolk Constabulary’s Home Security Checklist: http://www.suffolknwa.co.uk/documents/home-security-checklist–.pdf
Crime reduction advice on all subjects can be found on the Suffolk Police website: https://www.suffolk.police.uk/advice/crime-prevention-z
Remember ‘crime cannot flourish in a community that cares’, so be on the alert and be watchful in looking after yourself and your neighbours.
Kind regards
Gerry Blake
Neighbourhood Watch Coordinator
Scheme 180: Dukes Meadow, Cockfield
