Find advice on how to report various digital safety concerns, and resources for support when your digital safety or wellbeing or that of others has been compromised. Seek Help from the University of Edinburgh Support and guidance provided by the University and the Students’ Association on what to do if you or someone you know has been the victim of a digital safety breach. Click to expand the panels relevant to your support needs. In case of a Scam, Fraud or Hack If you’ve been the victim of a phishing scam, online fraud, or hack, contact the Information Security (IS) Helpline immediately to report the issue. Your enquiry will then be forwarded to the relevant University department for further action. Contact IS Helpline To Report Online Bullying, Harassment, Discrimination or Gender-based violence on campus The University’s Report + Support platform, managed by the Equally Safe team, allows both anonymous and named reporting of distressing situations related to sexual violence, harassment, sextortion, domestic abuse and stalking. It is recommended you access the platform via a Virtual Private Network (VPN) from off-campus networks where possible. While reporting an incident through the Report and Support platform does not mean a complaint or conduct investigation is automatically instigated, support staff can discuss incidents further if you make a report by name. Report + Support Register for the University's Virtual Private Network (VPN) For the Students' Association Advice Place Guidance on Harassment, Safety & Crime; and on Complaints and Conduct General safety advice curated by the Students’ Association on what to do if you’ve been the victim of online harassment or discrimination and how to report a crime. Advice Place Guidance on Harassment, Safety & Crime Advice on what kind of behaviour is considered misconduct and how to make a complaint to the University if your digital safety has been compromised. Advice Place Guidance on Complaints and Conduct For the University of Edinburgh Complaints Procedure This webpage outlines the formal procedure for filing a complaint at the University when frontline resolutions have failed. The complaints procedure website describes "frontline resolutions" as early stage resolutions by those who have a direct influence on the situation. University of Edinburgh Complaints Procedure To Seek Mental Health and Wellbeing Support We know that digital safety breaches can greatly impact mental health and wellbeing. You can access specialist support for a variety of safety concerns, both online and off, through the Staff and Student Counselling Services. Student Counselling Services Staff Counselling Services If you are unsure about where to seek support in the University, consult your student adviser who will point you to the right service. Your Student Adviser Consider External Support for Your Online Safety Concerns Here you will find useful external resources if your digital safety or the safety of someone you know has been compromised. Click to expand the panels relevant to your support needs. To Report Online Abuse on a Wide Range of Media Ofcom may be able to help you complain about or report a wide range of issues, including scam calls, abusive calls, personal data and privacy, or harmful content on a broadcast service, an online streaming service, website or app. Ofcom: Make a Complaint To Report a Cybersecurity Incident A government organisation that helps protect national critical services from cyber-attacks, manage major incidents, and improve the underlying security of the UK Internet. Report a Cyber Incident: National Cyber Security Centre To Report Scams and Frauds Police Scotland handle all reports of fraud and other financial crimes in Scotland. If you have been the victim of online fraud, report the crime to Police Scotland without delay. Police Scotland: Scams and Frauds Police Scotland: Contact Us Report scam texts and mobile calls to 7726 in the United Kingdom. Find information, including video guides, on how to do this below. Ofcom: How to report scam texts and mobile calls to 7726 To Report Illegal Content Online You can anonymously and confidentially report child sexual abuse content, criminally obscene adult content and non-photographic child sexual abuse images through the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF). Internet Watch Foundation To Report Distressing Content Online This website offers advice and a platform where you can report content that has caused you or someone you know distress or harm. Specific harms addressed include online abuse, bullying and harassment, threats, impersonation, and various types of upsetting content. Report Harmful Content To Report and Seek Advice and Support for Intimate Image Abuse Sextortion, which involves the use of threatening to share sexual information, images or video with other parties, is unfortunately on the rise. Police Scotland have issued some helpful guidance on what to do if you or someone you know has been victimised in this way. Police Scotland Guidance on Sextortion Revenge Porn Helpline is A UK-based service dedicated to supporting all adults who have been the victim of intimate image abuse. This site provides free, non-judgemental and confidential advice and support via email and phone. Revenge Porn Helpline If someone is threatening to share intimate images of you or someone you know, StopNCII.org, run by the National Revenge Porn Helpline, can help you digitally hash images, preventing them from being shared online. Stop Non-Consensual Intimate Image Abuse If you or someone you know has been affected by sextortion, the Rape Crisis Centre's Little Green Book might also help by looking at trauma, the effects of sexual violence, ways of coping and recovery. Little Green Book (Edinburgh Rape Crisis Centre) To Report Hate Crime Online True Vision offers guidance on how to report online hate crime and illegal content that incites hatred on the grounds of race, religion, sexual orientation/identity, and disability. True Vision - Reporting Internet Hate Crime Seek Platform-Specific Guidance Find guidance on reporting harmful content and terms of service breaches on specific websites and social media platforms. Click to expand the panels relevant to your support needs. Facebook Guidance on how to report inappropriate or abusive content and behaviours on Facebook. Facebook - Report Something Instagram Guidance on how to report inappropriate or abusive content and behaviours on Instagram. Instagram - How to Report Things WhatsApp Guidance on staying safe on WhatsApp and reporting someone on WhatsApp. How to stay safe on WhatsApp How to protect yourself from suspicious messages and scams How to block and report someone Google Guidance on how to report abuse, inappropriate content and illegal activity on Google. Google - report abuse or legal issue YouTube Safety tools and resources, as well as guidance on how to report abusive behaviours and privacy violations that go against YouTube's Community Guidelines. YouTube - Community Guidelines YouTube - Get help as a YouTube user YouTube - Creator Safety Centre X (Formerly Twitter) Guidance on how to report violations of the X (formerly Twitter) Rules and Terms of Service, including abusive behaviour and exploitation. X (formerly Twitter) - Rules and Policies X (formerly Twitter) - Report violations TikTok Guidance on staying safe on TikTok, reporting various types of content and reporting illegal content. Safety on Tiktok Report a Problem Reporting Illegal Content © Shivani Rao, Victoria Madden, University of Edinburgh, 2022, CC BY-SA 4.0, unless otherwise indicated. This article was published on 2024-10-08
