Real stories and practical help
First, breathe.
Then let’s work out what to do.
Real accounts from people who have been scammed, hacked or defrauded, and the practical steps that helped them recover. You are not the only one, and it was not your fault.
“I stopped feeling stupid the moment I read someone else describe the exact call that fooled me. Then I reported it.”
If it just happened
Tell us what happened and we will tell you what to do first
Some of this has a clock on it. A bank can sometimes stop a transfer in the first hours and almost never after that.
The wall
Stories, in their own words
I lent my phone hotspot to a stranger at the airport
“I was sitting at Ngurah Rai airport in Bali, just killing time before my flight back. This guy walks up to me pretty…”
A fake alert inside my crypto app cost me $28,000
“I'm still reeling from this, but I need to get the story out there because it’s honestly terrifying how easily it…”
One dodgy download and someone was in my accounts by morning
“I’ll just come out and say it: I’m an idiot. I downloaded a file I knew was dodgy, and the internet gods punished me…”
My friend found a Facebook page full of AI deepfakes of her
“last night, i woke up to my friend spam calling me, and when i answered, i immediately heard sobs from the other side.…”
I pirated a game and my PC started opening PowerShell on its own
“Last week I tried to download a pirated game. Shortly after, my Discord account got hacked but I caught it immediately.…”
I clicked a fake Fair Work email and my account emailed our suppliers
“Honestly, I still feel like a total muppet over this. I was the restaurant manager of a massive buffet in Sydney CBD.…”
My data was in the Qantas breach and I was too embarrassed to ask
“I was just informed by our cyber team that my data is part of the Qantas breach. I honestly have no idea what to do or…”
My retired uncle sent 1.5 million shillings to a woman who did not exist
“My uncle just retired from customs and this still hurts to think about because he’s not even someone who uses the…”
Recovery guides
The longer version
Clear, calm guides written for the worst day. No jargon, no blame.
Urgent Action
I clicked a suspicious link. What now?
What clicking actually does, what it does not do, and how to tell the difference between a scare and a real problem.
Urgent Action
Someone has stolen my identity
How to stop someone opening accounts in your name, prove who you are, and undo the damage already done.
Urgent Action
Someone has taken over my account
What to do in the first hour when someone else is inside your email, social or bank account, and how to work out how they got in.
Has something like this happened to you?
Three sentences is enough. It is anonymous, a person reads every word before anything is published, and we do not rewrite what you wrote.