While scrolling online, you’ll almost inevitably have come across posts or links with headlines like “You Won’t Believe These 10 Crazy Facts about …”. Such lurid language – and the often-dubious nature of the content it promotes – has become something of a running joke on the internet. Yet while these articles are often laughed at by communities online, they can have an insidious side.

Clickbait, as it’s known, can frequently function as part of a trap: intended to draw users in for the sake of advertising revenue or, in worse cases, masking an attempting to collect their personal information. This #WakeUpWednesday guide explores the various risks of clickbait and offers some top tips for evading the pitfalls of this controversial marketing technique.