How to bank safely online

Online banking is very safe when you follow a few simple habits. Most losses happen because someone is tricked into giving away access. Weak technology is rarely the cause.

Lock down your login

• Use a strong, unique password for your bank and your email. Three random words, like CoffeeTrainFish, is easy to remember and hard to guess.
• Secure your email account first. Whoever controls your email can reset most of your other passwords.
• Turn on two-step verification or use your banking app to approve logins and payments. Use a passkey if your bank offers one.
• Use a password manager, or the one built into your phone or browser, so you don't reuse passwords.
• Never share one-time passcodes. A code sent by your bank is like a signature. Read the message carefully. It usually says what you're approving.

Always go to your bank directly

• Type your bank's address yourself or use a saved bookmark or the official app. Don't follow links in emails, texts or adverts.
• Look carefully at the address bar. Scam sites use look-alike addresses such as yourbank-secure-login.com.
• The padlock only means the connection is encrypted. It doesn't mean the site is genuine.
• Log out when you finish, especially on a shared computer. Better still, don't bank on shared or public computers.

What your bank will never do

• Ask you to move money to a "safe" or "new" account
• Ask for your full PIN or full online banking password
• Ask you to read out or forward a one-time passcode
• Ask you to install software or give remote access to your device
• Send someone to collect your card, cash or PIN
• Pressure you to act immediately or keep a call secret from staff

If anyone asks you to do any of these, it's a scam, even if they know details about you or the call appears to come from your bank's real number.

Paying someone new

• Confirm bank details by phone using a number you already know, especially for invoices, builders, solicitors and house deposits. Email requests to "change bank details" are a classic scam.
• Pay attention to Confirmation of Payee. If your bank says the name doesn't match, stop and check.
• Read the warnings your bank shows before a payment. They are written about real scams.
• Avoid paying strangers by bank transfer for goods. A credit card or a payment service with buyer protection is safer.

Keep an eye on your account

• Turn on payment notifications in your banking app.
• Check statements regularly and report anything you don't recognise straight away.
• Set daily payment limits if your bank allows it, and consider freezing cards you rarely use.

Last reviewed: October 2026