Staying safe from fraud messages - what we won’t ask you

We’ll never ask you for payment details over Live Chat or by email. We’ll also never ask for your PIN. You can relax knowing that all our card payments are processed securely within our systems. Likewise, we’ll never call you to discuss payment details on your account. If you receive a call from someone claiming to be from Three but you have some doubts, hang up and contact us directly.

If you receive a message about payment issues from us, make sure to read it over carefully. Watch out for spelling mistakes or claims that something is wrong with your account. Often, fraudsters want to scare you into taking urgent action and telling them your details. Make sure the URL is always three.co.uk or 3.uk.

If you’re in doubt or suspicious of an SMS you weren’t expecting to receive, forward the message to 7726. We’ll review it, and if it’s not from us we’ll block it from our network. Some Android phones even support a function that prompts the user to report the message as spam. Nuisance calls can also be reported by sending the word ‘call’ followed by the suspicious number to 7726.

Any changes made to your account will trigger an SMS alert. As an example, this could be a change to your alternative number, home address or email.

You’ll also receive an SMS if there was a request to leave our network. This will generate a PAC to transfer your phone number. A PAC message may also be followed by a sudden drop of service. This could even be the first sign that something is wrong.  If you receive a text message with a change that you haven’t asked for, get in touch.

We’d also recommend you call your bank and change your passwords to protect your bank accounts. Check out our guide on the types of fraud and ways to detect it.

For another level of protection, you can add a memorable name or place to your account. Try to choose something which is less obvious for someone to guess, and avoid your own names or address. Setting this up also makes it easy and quick to confirm your identity when you’re on a call to us. You can amend this by logging into your My3 account and checking your details in the ‘Security’ section.

Check out our Privacy and safety hub for more information.