“Cats have flexible spines and can pivot their back feet and scratch you.” From CatWatch newsletter.
My technique:
Scruff across the shoulders, instead of the neck. The neck protects the esophagus and trachea, so I don’t mess with it.
Support the cat, either by keeping the cat on the table, quickly wrapping the cat in a towel, or holding the cat tight up against my body. Nothing dangles. A cat is not an astronaut. They feel the weight of gravity just like we do, even if it doesn’t always look that way.