Moyan Next Step · United States
I clicked a suspicious link. What next?
Choose what happened to get an ordered checklist drawn from FTC and official provider guidance. You can select several situations, including things you are unsure about. This tool does not inspect links, accounts or devices.
If money was sent, contact the payment provider immediately through a known official channel. You do not need to finish this questionnaire first. FTC payment guidance (reviewed 2026-10-17).
What this guide can do
This checklist cannot determine whether a link was malicious, an account is secure, a device is clean, or money can be recovered. Checkmarks record your review, not resolution.
Independent Moyan guidance, not a government service or endorsement. Reporting and identity-theft resources here focus on the US. Provider procedures, payment rights and available help vary by country, state and account. Outside the US, use your provider and local consumer-protection authority.
Sources read on ; next editorial review due . This is a curated snapshot, not live monitoring. Consult the linked official guidance for current instructions.
What happened after the link?
Answer for everything that happened, even across multiple messages or accounts. Yes means at least once. Repeat the relevant steps for each affected account, payment provider or device. Use Unsure instead of guessing.
Only fixed choices are needed. Do not share links, messages, passwords, codes, payment details or identity documents. Choices and checkmarks stay in this page’s memory and clear on refresh or Reset. This tool adds no storage, analytics or submission calls. Ordinary site requests still occur; browser extensions and external destinations are outside this tool’s control.
Read the guidance by situation
These are the same action cards used by the questionnaire. They are available without submitting anything or creating an account. Open the sections that apply. Choosing “only opened” does not produce a safety verdict.
Use a known official contact route
Contact the company through a website or phone number you already know is real, rather than contact details in the suspicious message. Do not send more passwords or codes in response to it. Moyan precaution: if a device may be compromised, use a different device you trust for sensitive payment or account steps, following the provider’s recovery requirements.
- FTC: Recognize and avoid phishing scams — reviewed 2026-10-17
- Apple: Phishing and social engineering guidance — reviewed 2026-10-17
Contact the payment provider promptly
If money was sent or an unfamiliar payment appears, contact the bank, card issuer, payment app, gift-card issuer or crypto service immediately. Ask about reversal or refund; recovery is not guaranteed. For cash sent by delivery, contact the carrier as soon as possible. The FTC guide covers each method.
- FTC: What to do if you were scammed — reviewed 2026-10-17
Address possible device access
If harmful software may have downloaded or someone accessed your device, follow the FTC device guidance: update security software, scan and remove identified problems. Seek the manufacturer or a known, trusted support provider for device-specific help. A scan cannot establish that a device is clean. Before account recovery on a computer, the FTC says to update security software, scan, remove identified threats and restart. If you cannot address possible device access, seek trusted device-specific help before entering new credentials on it.
- FTC: What to do if you were scammed — reviewed 2026-10-17
- FTC: Recover a hacked email or social account — reviewed 2026-10-17
Change an exposed password or use account recovery
If a password was exposed or someone accessed your device, change affected account passwords and any reuse on other accounts; enable two-factor authentication. If locked out, use the provider’s official recovery process. For possible device access, review the device step first.
- FTC: What to do if you were scammed — reviewed 2026-10-17
- FTC: Recover a hacked email or social account — reviewed 2026-10-17
Review the account connected to the code or prompt
A verification code or approved prompt can be an authentication factor. If shared or approved for someone else, use that provider’s official account-security or recovery guidance. Do not treat a code expiring as proof that access was prevented. Google’s guide covers security events and unfamiliar devices; Apple’s guide covers passwords, codes and account protection.
- FTC: Two-factor authentication — reviewed 2026-10-17
- Google: Secure a compromised account — reviewed 2026-10-17
- Apple: Phishing and social engineering guidance — reviewed 2026-10-17
Review access and recovery settings
If account access may have been exposed, follow the provider’s security instructions. For a recovered email or social account, the FTC recommends signing out other sessions, enabling two-factor authentication, checking recovery contacts and removing forwarding rules you did not create. Google provides account-specific security-event and device checks.
- FTC: Recover a hacked email or social account — reviewed 2026-10-17
- Google: Secure a compromised account — reviewed 2026-10-17
Get guidance for the information exposed
If personal information may be exposed, the FTC directs you to IdentityTheft.gov for steps suited to that information. If identity misuse has occurred, use its recovery-plan service. For an exposed Social Security number with no known misuse, including when unsure, use its data-breach guidance. Do not enter any identity details on Moyan.
- FTC: Recognize and avoid phishing scams — reviewed 2026-10-17
- FTC: What to do if you were scammed — reviewed 2026-10-17
Review what happened after opening the link
Opening a link alone does not establish whether an account or device was affected. If a download may have occurred, choose Unsure for the device question. The FTC recommends updated security software and a scan if you think a link downloaded harmful software. Revisit the questions if you discover new information.
- FTC: Recognize and avoid phishing scams — reviewed 2026-10-17
Consider reporting the phishing attempt
The FTC accepts scam reports at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. This is an optional external step; Moyan submits nothing and cannot recover money or accounts. Reporting does not replace contacting the relevant provider.
- FTC: Recognize and avoid phishing scams — reviewed 2026-10-17
If identity misuse has occurred, the FTC directs people to IdentityTheft.gov for a tailored recovery plan. That external service may request details; Moyan does not collect or forward them.
How the checklist is selected
Yes and Unsure include the relevant action; Unsure adds a conditional label. Password, code or possible device access also includes account-setting review. Device access includes a password-review step because credentials may be affected without being typed. All No includes opening-only guidance. No risk score or AI diagnosis is produced.
You can revise any answer to clear the previous checklist and checkmarks. The tool does not visit a suspicious URL, contact a company, file a report, or verify that an action succeeded. Official source links leave Moyan and follow the destination’s own privacy practices.
For other local tools, see CSV Cleanup & Check or the tools directory.