What to do if…
you receive a message from someone you know that feels off and asks you to meet urgently in a private place

What to do now

1. Create a safety pause. Put the phone down briefly and decide: no private meet-up until the person has been verified. Urgency can be used to push you into acting before you think.
2. Verify identity using a different route from the message.
   • Call the person using a number you already have saved, not a number sent in the message.
   • If they do not answer, try a video call or message them on a different app or platform you have used with them before.
   • If you ask a check question, choose something that would not be easy to guess from social media. Do not rely on this alone if anything still feels wrong.
3. If they claim there is an emergency, offer safer help instead of meeting privately.
   • Say you can call them, call someone close to them, or call emergency services on their behalf.
   • If you have a genuine reason to think someone is in immediate danger, call 999.
   • If it is concerning but not immediate danger, contact police on 101 for non-emergency advice.
4. Only consider meeting after verification, and only with safer conditions.
   • Choose a busy public place with staff, such as a café, supermarket, or station concourse.
   • Do not meet in a park, alley, car park, private home, vehicle, or quiet corner.
   • Arrange your own transport and keep your own way home.
   • Bring someone with you or ask a trusted person to be nearby and reachable.
5. Set up a simple safety net before you leave home.
   • Tell one trusted person who you are meeting, where, and when you will check in.
   • Share live location with that trusted person, not with the person asking you to meet.
   • Keep your phone charged and keep your attention free enough to notice what is around you.
6. If you feel unsafe while out, leave rather than explain.
   • Walk into a staffed venue and tell staff you feel unsafe and need help getting home.
   • In some participating venues, you may be able to ask staff for “Angela” as a code phrase to signal that you need help. If they do not recognise it, simply say you feel unsafe and need assistance.
7. If you need emergency help but cannot speak safely, use the Silent Solution.
   • Call 999.
   • Listen to the operator and respond by coughing, tapping, or pressing keys if you can.
   • If prompted and you cannot speak, press 55 on a mobile to be put through to police.
8. If the message looks like a scam or account takeover, do only what is needed for safety now.
   • Screenshot the message if it is safe to do so.
   • Stop engaging with the account.
   • Forward suspicious text messages to 7726 and suspicious emails to report@phishing.gov.uk when you are safe.
   • If money was lost, you were hacked, or you think a crime happened, use official police or fraud reporting routes after the immediate risk has passed.