Press Releases09 Jul 24

How to keep yourself (and others) safe from scams

It’s likely that most people in Ireland today have received a scam call, email, letter or doorstop visit, and many – of all ages – have been taken advantage of by scammers.  Through the Church Leaders Group, the Church of Ireland has in recent years been supporting efforts to keep people safe from scams.

In any year, most of us will be targeted with an attempt to take money from us but the good news is that if you can spot a scam, you can stop it too.  One of the best tools for tackling any scam is to remember the four–point ‘scam test’ which anyone can use if a cold caller gets in touch, or if they receive suspicious messages:

Seems to be good to be true
Contacted out of the blue
Asked for personal details
Money requested

Parishes can help to prevent scams and encourage the reporting of scams to the PSNI and An Garda Síochána by sharing advice and information with your members and neighbours from the Church of Ireland website, available here on our website.

This includes leaflets for printing which can be shared on church premises or in pastoral visits, videos for social media channels, and information points that can be announced before, during and/or after a service if clergy become aware of a particular concern.