POLICE in Dorset are warning residents what to do if they are suspicious they could be a victim of a 'phishing' exercise.

Phishing is the fraudulent practice of sending emails purporting to be from reputable companies in order to get individuals to reveal personal information, such as passwords and credit card numbers.

Guidance of what to do has been issued in case of a possible phishing exercise.

A spokesman from Dorset Police said: "If you have received an email which you are not quite sure about, or an email is asking you to login to your account, or maybe to 'confirm' payment details.

"If you are suspicious, you should report it by forwarding the email to: report@phishing.gov.uk."