The cost of living crisis has been crippling households across the UK as people struggle to afford their rising energy bills and high food prices.
Unfortunately, at a time when many families are struggling more than ever before, criminals are exploiting the cost of living crisis in an attempt to scam people out of money by offering fake cost of living payments, tax rebates and energy discounts.
Warnings have been issued as thousands of people have received the scam texts, while the Department for Work and Pensions has urged people not to give out personal information over email or text message.
However, some of the scams can be very convincing and easy to fall for, even appearing to come from councils and energy companies themselves.
As they become more common, here are the scams you should look out for and what to do if you think you've received a fraudulent text, email or phone call.
Texts offering cost of living payments
In July, the DWP warned people about scammers who were targeting people about cost of living payments, and these types of scam texts are still doing the rounds, with Trading Standards Scotland recently issuing its own warning.
The text will typically claim to be from "Gov.org" and say that you are eligible for a cost of living payment. It will include a link to claim the money, which will lead you to a site where scammers will then try to harvest your personal information.
The DWP said it had received some reports of people being sent an email after the text asking them to call a number to provide more information.
These types of texts are a scam - the cost of living payments are paid automatically into your account if you are eligible and you do not need to apply for them or call DWP.
The DWP also added: "We will never ask for personal details by SMS or email."
Council tax rebate scam
Councils including West Northamptonshire, South Lanarkshire, Oldham, Stevenage, North Devon and more have been warning residents about email and phone scams in relation to the government £150 council tax rebate.
The councils have urged people not to give away their bank or credit card details over email or phone as councils will not ask for your bank account or personal details in this way.
The £150 council tax rebate is paid automatically to those who pay using direct debit.
For those who don't pay with direct debit, most councils are collecting details for the council tax rebate via secure online forms, not emails or phone calls.
Fake Ofgem £400 energy rebate
Another big cost of living scam is the bogus Ofgem £400 energy rebate.
People have been receiving fraudulent messages via both text and email claiming to be from Ofgem, saying they are eligible for a £400 energy rebate followed by a link to an application form.
Ofgem has confirmed these messages are scams to harvest your personal data.
Earlier this year, former Chancellor Rishi Sunak did announce that millions of households would receive a £400 discount on their energy bills as part of the Energy Bills Support Scheme.
The discount is either being applied automatically over the course of six months, or being provided by energy bill discount vouchers issued by SMS text, email or post.
However, the government has said that in all cases, "no household should be asked for bank details at any point" and that "Ministers are urging consumers to stay alert of potential scams and report these to the relevant authorities where they are suspected".
Discount on your energy bill scam
Similar to the energy rebate scam, this text that's being sent to people is offering them a discount on their energy bills.
The text is often sent under the sender name "UK Help" and claims to be from "GOVUK".
It usually says something like "you are eligible for a discounted energy bill under the Energy Bills Support Scheme. You can apply here" and is followed by a link.
The message is a scam and should be ignored; those who are eligible for the energy bill discount receive it automatically and do not need to apply.
How to report a scam and what to do if you think you've been scammed
If you get a scam text or email, you should ignore it and avoid clicking on any links that they contain. If you answer a phone call and you suspect that it is a scam, hang up immediately.
If you have responded to a text, email or phone call that you think may be a scam, the first thing that you should do is stop all further communication immediately.
After this you should contact your bank and cancel any recurring payments that you have.
Once you've done this, you can report the scam to the police through the Action Fraud line, which can be reached on 0300 123 2040. You can also report a scam anonymously on the Action Fraud website.
Even if you haven't been scammed, you can still report fraudulent messages that you receive.
If you think you have received an email scam, report it by forwarding the email to report@phishing.gov.uk.
Text scams can be reported by forwarding them to the number 7726 or by screenshotting the text and sending it to report@phishing.gov.uk.
If you find yourself on a website that you think might be a scam, you can report the URL of the site to NCSC by filling in an online form.
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