Fraud and scams

[MidnightPatrol]

The issue of fraud and scams is huge - and growing.

Just this week I’ve had both a call about my immigration status (fake) and unpaid tax (fake). A text message and multiple emails about parcels I need to provide info for / pay a delivery or customs fee (fake). Someone on my street got scammed by someone re: parking and took their credit card details. We have an ongoing problem of ‘Nottingham Knockers’. I’ve also read this week of the romance scam of the lady giving hundreds of thousands to someone she thought was Brad Pitt. A few weeks ago half my family were scammed by a WhatsApp ‘I’ve lost my phone’ thing. The no 1 issue in a fashion group I’m in is the issue of fakes on vinted / eBay. Everything I’ve ever attempted to sell on Facebook is responded to by a scam ‘we will send a courier to collect’ scam.

It’s an onslaught, basically.

Should there not be more public awareness / information for people about these kinds of scams? I get the odd ‘we won’t ask you for person information’ text from my bank, but even this messaging is confused by… other companies then ringing me and wanting me to confirm personal details with them (eg energy provider), which… contradicts that advice.

Now… I have my wits about me, and expect others to do the same. But there are so many of these scams now, how can we help people to actually know what to look out for? Particularly the elderly who seem to be particularly targeted.

There doesn’t seem to be much in the way of public information, but nor does much seem to be done about it.

There's lots of warnings out there?

You just need to be sensible, ask yourself why would Brad Pitt be calling YOU? How likely is it that your family member has lost their phone? Why wouldn't you ring their phone even if it's to help them locate it (that's how I find my lost phone!)

I think there is more done about it than we see, especially by the banks. I had a fraud attempt a few months ago and the bank were straight on it.
The reality is , it is an onslaught, and it’s easier to perpetrate because we are all so much more connected and available nowadays. And, many of the fraudsters are quite good at what they do.
Keep your wits about you and question anything and everything. And just slam the door on those Nottingham Knockers.

Ignore calls you don’t know but if you can’t do that then hang up on anyone with an Indian accent and block them.
I’ve had my bank account taken over numerous times by Indian scammers pretending to be my bank, even the hold music was the same.

I'd say everyone has either been attempted scammed, successfully scammed or knows someone who has. There's so much public info about it now. And it just really does happen to absolutely everyone. I think if you've got elderly relatives then it's a good idea to keep them up to speed about it. But people do need to take a certain amount of personal responsibility.

I work for bank within Fraud and they are all spending so much money on fraud prevention and awareness. However we can put provisions in place and educate people but some still fall for scams as they can be very clever. Always ask yourself is it too good to be true? Is it realistic (eg the Brad Pitt scam) if your energy company, or whoever, call you and you are not sure it is legit tell them you will call them back on the main advertised number, don't ask for a number to call them back. If it doesn't feel right, follow your gut. The problem is we can't warn against certain scams because the scammers then change their tactics and it's all out of date. They are annoyingly clever