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A scam is a scheme to con people out of money.
There are lots of different ways scammers do this, from tricking people into giving them personal details, to impersonating an official organisation like a bank to get people to directly hand over money.
Most victims don’t report scams. But the impacts can be huge.
People can:
- lose their life savings
- suffer emotional trauma or mental health problems
- lose their confidence
- suffer long-term health problems
Common scams
There are lots of different scams out there. By knowing what to look for you can help protect yourself.
Common scams include:
- Emails scams. These messages contain links to genuine-looking websites that are designed to steal personal and financial information.
- Upfront payment/fee scams. They usually ask for an upfront payment to unlock either a cash prize, a PPI claim amount or for initiating a service.
- Doorstep selling. These all begin with the person getting an unrequested knock on their door. They are often for expensive home improvements which the victim did not want or was pressured into.
- Investment scams. Often conduced either online or over the phone, these can result in people losing thousands of pounds for non-existent stocks, shares and other investments such as rare wine or art.
- Antivirus/computer. People are cold called and told they have a problem with their computer which, for a fee, can be fixed. Alternatively the victim might initiate the contact in response to an online advert or prompt claiming that their device has been infected with a virus.
Scams and the cost of living crisis
The increased financial pressures many are facing has put more people into difficult situations. We’ve already seen scammers exploiting this.
Some of the scams to look out for include:
- Scammers pretending to be energy companies, luring people with “too good to be true” deals in order to steal their money
- Fake sales representatives selling counterfeit shopping vouchers
- Fraudsters sending out phishing emails pretending to offer an energy rebate or government support to obtain people’s personal information
- It seems too good to be true
- Someone you don’t know contacts you unexpectedly
- You’re being urged to respond quickly
- You’ve been asked to pay for something urgently or in an unusual way
- You’ve been asked to give away personal information
If you think someone might be trying to scam you, get advice.
- Don’t be rushed into making any quick decisions
- Never give money or personal details, like passwords or bank details, to anyone you don’t know, trust or have only met online
- Before you buy anything do research the company or website you’re using
- Pay by debit or credit card
- Make sure your antivirus software is up to date and keep your online accounts secure
- Be suspicious – scammers can be very smart
- Contact your bank straight away to let them know what’s happened
- If the scam is a pension transfer, contact the provider immediately, along with the Pensions Advisory Service
- Change any relevant log-in details, and check for viruses if you were scammed on a computer
- Again, make sure you tell your bank what happened straight away. Most banks should reimburse you if you’ve transferred money to someone because of a scam
- If you’ve paid by Direct Debit, you should be able to get a full refund under the Direct Debit Guarantee
- If you’ve paid by card or PayPal you may be able to get some money back through the ‘chargeback scheme’
- Call the Citizens Advice consumer service on 0808 223 1133. They will pass on details of the scam to Trading Standards, and can offer further advice
- Report the scam to Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040 or at www.actionfraud.police.uk. They’re the national reporting centre for fraud and can also give you a crime reference number
It’s also important to talk
By sharing your experiences with family and friends they can be prepared, and together we can put a stop to scams.
Purchase Fraud
What is it?
Online shopping provides criminals with an opportunity to trick people into paying for goods and services that don’t exist, often advertised via auction sites or social media with images taken from genuine seller’s to convince you they’re the real deal. Criminals also use cloned websites with slight changes to the URL to trick you into thinking you’re purchasing from the genuine site. They may also ask for payment prior to delivery and send you fake receipts and invoices that appear to be from the payment provider.
Types of fraud include buyers paying deposits for pets that don’t exist, DIY equipment purchases and electronic devices such as games consoles, mobile phones and other devices. Another tactic criminals use to trick people into falling for fraud is to ask for payment for courier services or insurance when buying and selling online.
How to spot purchase fraud
- You’re offered a heavily discounted or considerably cheaper product or service compared to the original items’ genuine worth. The deals often sound too good to be true.
- You’re asked to pay by bank transfer instead of using the online platform’s secure payment options.
- You receive a fake email receipt/invoice that appears to be from the website you’ve purchased from or the payment service used to make your purchase. The email address domain doesn’t match that of the genuine sender’s.
- The website that you’re purchasing from was only launched days/weeks ago.
- A sense of urgency is placed on ordering the product or service so that you don’t miss the price/deal.
Examples of purchase fraud
Callum* bought a laptop advertised at a heavily discounted price compared to the one he’d seen on an official website. Upon contacting the seller, he was told that the offer was for a limited time only and if Callum wanted the laptop, he needed to pay quickly by bank transfer to secure the item. Proof of payment was sent by the seller but when Callum asked for a tracking number he received no response. After numerous attempts to contact the seller, Callum searched their name using a search engine and came across numerous bad reviews from other people. He never received the laptop.
Mary* saw an advert for a blender that was selling at a third of the price that she’d seen on other sites. The website looked very professional and included lots of pictures and detail, so Mary proceeded with the purchase, believing she was getting a fantastic deal. Once her purchase was complete, she received an email from the ‘payment provider’ informing her there had been an issue with her payment and that a refund had been processed. Mary tried the purchase again, but little did she know she was paying a criminal – for a second time. She never received the blender.
Desperate to secure tickets to a sold-out concert, Nigel* posted a message on social media asking if anyone had tickets that they wanted to sell. Shortly after he was contacted by someone who had a couple of spare tickets. Nigel was elated. After a number of back-and-forth conversations Nigel was convinced the tickets were genuine, so he proceeded to make payment by bank transfer. The tickets never materialised and there was no further contact from the seller.
After several days of searching, Paula* spotted a listing for a puppy on an online auction site. She contacted the seller and not wanting to miss out, paid a deposit into the account details that the seller provided. Later that day, Paula received a message from the seller requesting additional payment to cover costs for vaccinations and insurance. Desperate for companionship, she proceeded to pay the associated fees. After a few days, Paula got back in touch with the seller but didn’t receive a response. She tried again on numerous occasions but never heard from the seller again. Subsequently the link that she used to view the puppy disappeared.
Andrew was using a holiday booking website he had stumbled across online to book a summer break overseas. He was looking through listings and found one that had everything he wanted and was at a very low price. He didn’t want to miss out on the great deal so he quickly contacted the owner, made a payment and provided his personal information.
Days later he realised he had fallen for a fraud when he couldn’t get hold of the owner and he found out the property was not on any online maps.
How to keep yourself safe from scams
You can search for a company’s details on GOV.UK. This will tell you if they’re a registered company or not.
If you’re buying something on a site you haven’t used before, spend a few minutes checking it – start by finding its terms and conditions. The company’s address should have a street name, not just a post office box.
Check to see what people have said about the company. It’s worth looking for reviews on different websites – don’t rely on reviews the company has put on its own website.
Also, don’t rely on seeing a padlock in the address bar of your browser – this doesn’t guarantee you’re buying from a real company.
Don’t click on or download anything you don’t trust – for example, if you get an email from a company with a strange email address. Doing this could infect your computer with a virus.
Make sure your antivirus software is up to date to give you more protection.
Some scammers try to get your personal information – for example, the name of your primary school or your National Insurance number. They can use this information to hack your accounts. If you come across sites that ask for this type of information without an obvious reason, check they’re legitimate.
Sometimes your log-in details can be made publicly available when a website is hacked. This means that someone could use your details in a scam. Check whether your accounts have been put at risk on Have I Been Pwned.
Make sure you have a strong password for your email accounts that you don’t use anywhere else. If you’re worried about remembering lots of different passwords, you can use a password manager.
Some websites let you add a second step when you log in to your account – this is known as ‘two-factor authentication’. This makes it harder for scammers to access your accounts.
Find out how to set up two-factor authentication across services like Gmail, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Outlook and iTunes on the on the National Cyber Security Centre website.
Pay by card to get extra protection if things go wrong. Read our advice on getting your money back after you’ve been scammed.
What to do if you've been scammed
If you’ve been scammed, you need to:
- protect yourself from further risks
- check if you can get your money back
- report the scam
If you saw the scam online or in an email or text
You can use our online tool to get advice. Our tool will ask you questions and use your answers to give you advice.
If you’ve been scammed, there are steps you can take to protect yourself from things getting worse. What you need to do depends on what’s happened.
If you feel threatened, report this to the police immediately by calling 999.
If the scammer comes to your door, calls you, or sends you a message, ignore them, but keep a record of what’s happened so you can report it. Read our advice on how to stop nuisance calls and texts.
Sometimes scammers ask to access your computer so they can control it remotely. For example, they might pretend to be from your internet provider and say they need to deal with a technical problem.
The scammer might have infected your computer with a virus, or stolen passwords and financial information. To stay safe you should:
reset your passwords
let your bank know your financial information might have been stolen
make sure you update your anti-virus software
You could also get an IT professional to check your computer.
Tell the police immediately by calling 101.
Contact your bank immediately so they can protect your account.
After you’ve told your bank about the scam, keep an eye on your bank statements and look out for any unusual transactions. Also check your credit score to see if there are applications for credit you don’t recognise.
Change your password as soon as possible. If you’ve used the same password on any other accounts you should change it there too.
Make sure you create a strong password – for example, using numbers and special characters.
Some sites let you add extra security to your account. This is known as ‘two-factor authentication’.
Your account might have been hacked if a scammer has stolen your passwords. If you think this has happened, the National Cyber Security Centre has advice on recovering an account that’s been hacked.
If you’ve lost money because of a scam, there might be things you can do to get it back.
Read our advice on checking if you can get your money back after a scam.
If you’re helping someone who’s been scammed, there are ways you can manage their bank account for them. You might need to do this if you want to stop payments or claim back money.
The person you’re helping needs to fill in a form giving you permission to manage their account. This is known as a ‘third party mandate’. Most banks have a third party mandate on their website.
To find out more, read our advice on managing affairs for someone else.
Report the scam
If you’ve been scammed, there are organisations you should report the scam to.
Don’t feel embarrassed about reporting a scam – scammers are clever and scams can happen to anyone.
Reporting a scam helps track down and stop scammers. This prevents other people from being scammed.
You should:
- protect yourself from further risks
- gather all the details of the scam
- report the scam to us
report the scam to other organisations
Gather all the details of the scam
Write down the details of your scam. This will help you remember all the important information when you report it.
Make sure you include:
- who you’ve been in contact with – write down names, numbers and addresses if you have them
- why you’re suspicious
- what information you’ve shared – for example, passwords, PINs, or bank details
- whether you’ve paid any money
- how you’ve paid – for example, credit card or bank transfer
Report the scam to Citizens Advice
You can either report a scam by:
Once we’ve got all the information we need, we’ll pass this to Trading Standards. We don’t investigate scams ourselves.
Trading Standards gathers information about scams so they can take legal action against scammers.
You can also find out more about current scams on Action Fraud’s website at www.actionfraud.police.uk/news.