Responsibility note: The information in this guide is general. It does not cover every type of message, scam, or possible situation, and it is not legal, financial, or personal cybersecurity advice. It is based on authoritative sources (Home Front Command, Israel National Cyber Directorate, Israel Police, Bank of Israel, and the National Headquarters for the Protection of Children Online). Before taking an action with financial, legal, or safety consequences, contact the competent body through a channel you located independently.
During an emergency, follow the official channels of the relevant authority.
How to use this guide
This guide is for the moment when you receive an urgent, frightening, or tempting message during an emergency: an alert, donation request, demand to transfer money, update link, image from an incident scene, or a message claiming to come from a public body. The goal is to stop, verify, protect information and money, and report through the appropriate channel.
Why is extra caution needed during emergencies?
Emergencies increase pressure, uncertainty, and the need for fast information. Hostile actors and criminals may exploit this to spread rumors and false information, impersonate emergency agencies, banks, or familiar people, and send links or urgent requests for money or personal details. Even genuine information may be old, partial, or used manipulatively.
At the same time, emergencies can lead to the circulation of genuine but confidential or private information, such as impact locations or names of casualties.
Therefore, stop before acting or sharing, verify the source through an official channel you found independently, and consider the type of information as well—not only the sense of urgency or the apparent identity of the sender.
Four questions to ask first
- Who is the original source of the message—not merely the person who forwarded it to me?
- Does the same message appear on the official channel of the organization it refers to?
- Am I being asked to click, provide a code, transfer money, or act immediately?
- Could sharing the message expose a location, an injured person, or operational information?
Important: Urgency, fear, and apparent authority are common persuasion tactics. Do not take an irreversible action before independent verification.
1. Prepare in advance
- Save official links or apps for Home Front Command, the local authority, your health fund, and your bank.
- Enable two-factor authentication on important accounts and use different passwords.
- Set a household rule: verification codes and passwords are never given to another person by phone, message, or chat. Enter a code only on an official website or app you located yourself, and only for an action you initiated and recognize as legitimate.
- Agree who helps an older adult, child, or person who does not read Hebrew to check suspicious messages.
- Know the reporting lines: Israel National Cyber Directorate — 119; Israel Police — 100; National Headquarters for the Protection of Children Online — 105.
2. A five-step verification ladder
| Step | Action |
|---|---|
| 1. Stop | Do not click, forward, or reply immediately. |
| 2. Identify the source | Check who claims to have sent the message, what is being requested, and what supposedly happens if you do not act. |
| 3. Move to an independent channel | Open the official website or app yourself; do not use the link in the message. |
| 4. Compare | Check date, time, area, wording, and whether there is a matching official notice. |
| 5. Decide | Only after verification should you act, save the message as evidence, or report it. |
3. Signs of false information and rumors
- There is no clear, identifiable, authoritative primary source.
- A photo or video is shared without a verifiable date, place, and context.
- A dramatic headline does not match the content of the message or the official notice.
- You are told to “send this to everyone” before there is time to verify it.
- The message combines a true fact with an unsupported conclusion.
- Be especially careful with messages describing something as “urgent” or happening “now” without verifiable details.
- Remember that even genuine content can be harmful when it is old, partial, taken out of context, or exposes sensitive information. The test is not only “real or fake,” but whether the information is current, complete, and appropriate to share.
4. Recognize impersonation and scams
- A request for a password, one-time code, card number, photo of an ID, or login details.
- A request to enter a code. Before entering one, read the entire message and check which action the code authorizes, the amount involved, and who receives it. A code that arrives when you did not initiate an action is a reason to stop and contact the bank.
- A link whose address looks similar to, but is not identical to, the official website.
- A number shown on your phone during an incoming call does not prove the caller's identity, even if it appears to be a bank, police, or government number. Hang up and call back using an official number you found independently.
- A demand to move money to a “safe account,” withdraw cash, install remote-control software, or pay an advance fee.
- A donation request to a private account or unverifiable link.
- Impersonation of a family member using voice, video, or messaging, combined with pressure not to tell anyone else. If suspicious, end the call and contact the person again using the familiar number saved in your contacts. You can ask a question only that person should know. Do not rely only on the voice, image, or displayed phone number.
Important: Bank of Israel and Israel Police warn that a legitimate financial institution will not ask you to give it a verification code sent to you. Caller ID is not proof of identity.
5. If you clicked or provided information
- End contact with the sender and do not continue following instructions.
- Immediately contact your bank or credit-card company using a number you found independently and ask them to stop suspicious activity. Check transactions, transfers, new beneficiaries, and changes to account details, and continue monitoring for unusual activity in the following days.
- Change the password from a device you trust and on which no remote-control software was installed. Disconnect sessions you do not recognize and enable two-factor authentication. If you are unsure whether the device is safe, seek professional help.
- Report phishing, impersonation, account takeover, or a fake website to the Israel National Cyber Directorate at 119.
- Save screenshots, URLs, phone numbers, correspondence, and transaction evidence.
- If money was transferred, details were misused, impersonation occurred, or you suspect a criminal offense, file a police complaint. In immediate danger call 100.
Important: Do not delete evidence before saving a copy. Do not pay additional “release fees” and do not respond to someone promising to recover the money for a fee.
6. Before forwarding information
These rules apply both to questionable information and to verified information that should not be shared because of confidentiality or privacy:
- Check whether the information appears on a current official channel.
- Remove precise location, faces, vehicle numbers, documents, and medical details.
- Do not publish information about casualties, missing persons, or deaths before an authorized notification has been made to the family.
- Do not share real-time images of incident scenes, forces, defense systems, or troop movements.
- If you are unsure about the information, or do not know how to obscure details that compromise confidentiality, do not forward it. You can report it to the relevant authority instead.
7. Adaptations for age, language, accessibility, and digital literacy
Children and teenagers
- Explain that graphic videos should not be shared and that they should not click links promising a prize, exclusive information, or a photo.
- Online harm, threats, or extortion should be reported to hotline 105 and, in immediate danger, also to police hotline 100.
- Do not blame a child who clicked or shared; stopping quickly and preserving evidence are more important.
Older adults and people with low digital literacy
- Choose a regular person to help check and verify messages without taking control of the person's decisions away from them.
- Print official numbers for the bank, health fund, and local authority.
- Use a simple rule: end the incoming call; call back using an official number found separately.
Speakers of different languages and people with disabilities
- Prefer official channels in an accessible language and format.
- Make sure a translation refers to the same current version and not an older notice.
- Do not forward medical or personal information without consent, even when trying to help.
Reminder: what not to do
- Do not click a link merely because it was sent by someone you know; their account may have been compromised.
- Do not give a verification code, password, or card details to someone who contacted you.
- Do not install remote-control software at the instruction of a caller.
- Do not transfer money to a “safe account” or to a person coming to collect cash.
- Do not publish identifying information about casualties or operational information.
- Do not forward a message with the comment “I don't know if this is true.” The disclaimer does not prevent the harm.
- Do not confront a suspected scammer on social media or try to investigate them yourself.
8. Decision points
| Situation | Appropriate action |
|---|---|
| Unverified information with no request for action | Do not forward it; check an official channel. |
| Message containing a link or request for details | Stop, close it, and move to an independent official channel. |
| Details were provided or money was transferred | Immediately contact the bank/provider, secure access, report to 119 and to police as appropriate. |
| Threat, extortion, or immediate danger | Call 100; when children or teenagers are involved, also contact 105. |
| Content exposing an incident scene or a person | Stop distribution, preserve evidence, and report it to the platform and relevant authority. |
9. Short action sheet
• Stop — do not click and do not forward.
• Identify — who is the source and what are they asking you to do?
• Verify — independently open the official website or app.
• Protect — do not provide a code, password, money, or personal information.
• Document — save a screenshot, link, number, and time of contact.
• Report — 119 for cyber incidents; 100 for immediate danger or urgent crime; 105 for online harm to children; your bank for financial incidents.
This page is a summary of the guide and does not replace real-time official instructions.
Independent publication: This guide was developed by Prepared Home. It is not produced, approved, or operated by the organizations mentioned in it.
Sources checked in August 2026.
Main sources
Home Front Command. Do not share sensitive information online.
Israel National Cyber Directorate. Reporting a cyber incident.
Israel National Cyber Directorate. Guide to protection from phishing attacks.
Israel Police. Filing a police complaint.
Bank of Israel. Public warning about impersonation scams. 2024.
Bank of Israel. Financial scams — phishing.
National Headquarters for the Protection of Children Online. Digital emergency toolkit.
Check current notices and reporting channels during the event.