Simple steps to protect yourselves against scams. Please share.
1. Identity fraud:
Your personal information – your name, address and bank details – is very valuable to criminals. To stay safe, always:
- Shred or tear into small pieces anything with personal information on it before you throw it away or recycle.
- Be very wary of unsolicited phone calls, letters or emails from your bank asking you to confirm your personal details, password or security numbers.
- Don’t click on links sent in emails unless you’re sure you can trust the person who sent them.
- Never reply to unsolicited texts, emails or letters. If you do, you may be put on a scammer’s ‘suckers list’ and targeted in the future.
2. ‘Courier fraud’
A scammer persuades you on the phone to hand over your bank card to a courier or taxi driver and they often say they’re from your bank or the police. They may ask you to give them your card and PIN, set up a ‘safe’ account, or buy expensive goods like watches or mobile devices and hand these over to them.
Remember – this is a scam. Banks or the police never ask you to do this.
3. Lottery scams
Fraudsters contact you by post or email saying you’ve won a cash prize in an international lottery, sweepstake or prize draw; often Spanish, Canadian or Australian lotteries, but there are others. You’re told to keep your good luck a secret and to respond quickly to claim your ‘winnings’. But there’s no prize money. Often the winner’s certificate looks so convincing that people are taken in. You’ll be asked to pay admin fees such as taxes, legal costs, or banking fees. Each time the scammers will give you reasons why your winnings can’t be paid out – unless you make another payment to reach the ‘next stage’.
Don’t make any payments or give your bank details. Scammers can use them for identity fraud.
4. Investment fraud
Scammers tend to cold-call the over-55s offering high-yielding (but unregulated) investments like wine, land, carbon credits, gold or diamonds. These scammers often seem believable because they know a lot about you and build a ‘friendly’ relationship with you.
Remember – if it seems too good to be true, it probably is.
5. Dating sites and chatrooms
Scammers exploit your emotions to befriend you, often making you believe that you’re in a relationship with them. They then try to con money out of you.
They’re clever and convincing. Don’t let feelings of embarrassment stop you from reporting a scam. Remember, it’s often smart, confident people who get scammed. So if in doubt, always contact the police.
6. Computer software fraud
Scammers contact you to say there’s a problem with your computer. They say they’ll ‘fix’ the non-existent issue – for a fee. They’ll get you to hand over remote access to your computer and provide your bank payment details. They then take large amounts of money out of your account. Fraudsters often pretend to be working for Microsoft.
The average loss is £600 and the average age of people scammed is 62.
Remember – Computer firms don’t make unsolicited phone calls to help you fix your computer and tend not to send out unsolicited emails about security updates. Microsoft doesn’t ask for credit card information to validate copies of Windows.
To report a scam or fraud, contact:
Action Fraud – there is a link direct from the App under reporting crim
The UK’s national fraud and cybercrime reporting centre:
Telephone: 0300 123 2040
www.actionfraud.police.uk
Metropolitan Police fraud alerts
https://www.met.police.uk/report/fraud/
NEW:
Facebook will launch a new UK-wide scam ads reporting tool and dedicated complaints team later in 2019. It will also donate £3m to Citizens Advice to deliver a new UK Scams Action project (CASA) that will launch in May 2019
To avoid being scammed and find out how to spot frauds:
Also on the App or read from here The Little Book of Big Scams, an informative online guide by the Metropolitan Police: www.met.police.uk/docs/little_book_scam.pdf
Audio version at: content.met.police.uk/Article/Audio-version-of-Little-book-of-big-scams/1400014172033/140001417203
Scamsmart:
Scamsmart is a campaign set up by the Financial Conduct Authority to help prevent people being taken in by unsolicited investment offers.
Freephone: 0800 111 6768
www.fca.org.uk/scamsmart
Scamsmart has a warning list where you can check investments you’ve been offered:
scamsmart.fca.org.uk/warninglist/
Other guides:
Our sister consumer organisation, Which?, has useful information about scams and how to spot a scam.
The BBC has an interactive scams guide which includes video:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/guides/zxq8frd
They also have a Radio 5 Live special on scams, which you can hear at https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0000g5n
Citizens Advice has useful information about scams on its website where you’ll find more about avoiding and reporting scams:
Common scams
Reporting scams
