'Are You Okay?' Street Harassment Campaign

For more information visit https://www.ourwatch.org.uk/streetharassment.

Also covered at https://bexleywatch.blogspot.com/search?q=vawg.

New Neighbourhood Watch coordinator in Sherwood Park Avenue

Bexley Borough Neighbourhood Watch is looking for residents to come forward to assist the new Neighbourhood Watch coordinator in Sherwood Park Avenue.  SPA is a very long road, and an effective scheme cannot function without help.  If you care about your community and want to keep it safe and make it a better place to live, please contact Claire at BBNWA on bexleynw@outlook.com for further information.  Did you know that many home insurance companies give a discount to properties in a Neighbourhood Watch road? 

We are always looking to set up more Neighbourhood Watch schemes across the borough.  If you would like help to set up a scheme in your road, please get in touch.

Beware phone calls from 'your bank' after receiving fake texts

Scammers will initially cast their nets wide, sending thousands of fake text messages seemingly from legitimate companies. But for some, that’s just the start of the con, as we found victims can often suffer a secondary hit from the same criminals.

This one-two jab can be highly effective for fraudsters. They use the initial bogus text to establish trust, and at times, even the caller ID has been spoofed to make it look like your bank's genuine phone number. Read more about this type of scam.

Two-step scams

7 pension scams to watch out for

The Pensions Regulator says there is a greater risk of pensions scams right now as people who are struggling could be more susceptible to fake promises of early pension access or higher investment returns.

There are seven common types of pension scams. Make sure you know what to look out for.

Pension scams

Fake Emirates WhatsApp message

Random WhatsApp messages that claim to be from a large reputable brand are usually a scam and links included in the messages can install malware onto your device or phish for your personal information. The fake Emirates WhatsApp message advertises a link where you can ‘win’ a free holiday.

Always check the brand’s official website and social media pages to verify the information in the message. View our screenshots of a typical WhatsApp message scam.

Fake holiday giveaway

House fire - Crayford 🔥

Eight fire engines and around 60 firefighters tackled a fire on Crayford Way in Crayford. 

Half of the ground floors of four terraced houses were damaged by fire and the the first floors and the roofs of the properties were destroyed by the blaze. A number of people left the buildings before the Brigade arrived. Crews cooled and removed two gas cylinders as a precaution as some cylinders can explode when exposed to heat.

Station Commander David Reed, who was at the scene, said: "The roof spanning across four terraced houses was completely alight.

"One of the Brigade's 32-metre turntable ladders was used as a water tower at the scene to get water on the building externally. 

"Crayford Way is closed between Thames Road and Mill Place whilst crews work to make the scene safe and people are urged to avoid the area due to heavy congestion.

"The fire was producing a lot of smoke in the local area, so we advised residents to keep their windows and doors closed.

"There are currently no reports of any injuries."

The Brigade's 999 Control Officers took 10 calls to the blaze. 

The Brigade was called at 1724 and the fire was under control by 1949. Fire crews from Plumstead, Deptford, Eltham, Lee Green and surrounding fire stations attended the scene.

 The cause of the fire is under investigation.

Source: LFB

Explaining Two-Factor Authentication for extra online security

Two-factor authentication can increase the security of your online activities. This video explains phone-based two-factor authentication, with a demonstration of how to enable it on Twitter.  

Many major web service providers now offer phone-based two-factor authentication under a variety of different names. The video has some useful links for these in its description on youtube.

Little Guide to Two Factor Authentification (video)

Stepping up to multi-factor authentication

New guidance on implementing MFA to better secure online services from the National Cyber Security Centre.

Find out how to turn on 2-Step Verification

How to setup Google 2-Step Verification  (video):-

Use 2-Step Verification without your phone (video):-

For the tech savvy, 2 Factor Authentication without a phone, using Keepass or Safe In Cloud (password managers) to generate TOTP (Time-based One-Time Password or Passcode - 6-digit code for 30 seconds) codes (shown in the useful video):-