Scams

The Government has launched an Online Fraud Charter with 12 major tech companies in a “world-first” initiative to combat online scams, fake adverts and romance fraud.

Home Secretary James Cleverly hosted representatives from several leading tech companies – including Facebook, TikTok, Snapchat and YouTube – to sign the pledge to tackle internet fraud at Lancaster House in central London on Thursday morning.

https://www.impartialreporter.com/news/national/23957903.top-tech-firms-sign-new-government-charter-crack-online-fraud/

Brits need to be extra vigilant for festive fraudsters – as ‘purchase scams’ peak at the back end of the year, a bank has warned. Data, from NatWest, shows in the last four months of 2022, these cons – where scammers sell non-existent products at discounted prices to attract buyers – rose by 41 per cent.

https://uk.news.yahoo.com/brits-extra-vigilant-festive-fraudsters-111930676.html/

NatWest customers will be given the opportunity to play a board game in some of the bank’s branches.

https://www.bordertelegraph.com/news/national/uk-today/23949575.natwest-launches-board-game-educate-people-scams/

A woman conned out of £1,000 after receiving an email from a scammer impersonating her boss has issued a warning to shoppers this festive season.

https://news.stv.tv/north/woman-conned-out-of-1000-in-gift-card-scam-after-email-from-fraudster-impersonating-her-boss

HSBC has revealed a jump in UK business customers being targeted by scammers last month, as the banking giant called for industries including social media platforms to pull together to help tackle fraud ahead of Black Friday.

Purchase scams cases were 30% higher in October compared with the same month last year, the bank said.

WhatsApp users across Nottinghamshire are being encouraged to be vigilant after scammers hacked into accounts and asked their victim’s friends and family for money.

Nottinghamshire Police has received a spike in reports about a scam that sees a criminal gain control of a WhatsApp account belonging to someone who is part of a WhatsApp group – typically including members of a community or religious group.

With Black Friday approaching, parents are being warned to watch out for fake deals advertised online.

Research for the Take Five To Stop Fraud campaign, run by banking and finance industry body UK Finance, indicates that more than a quarter (27%) of parents have been tricked by purchase scams.

In recent weeks, police have received reports from individuals and businesses who were contacted by phone and/or email by a person claiming to be from their bank.

Through emails and phone conversations, some lasting over an hour with individuals to others which involved separate calls over several days, the fraudster/s managed to get financial details to access bank accounts of those they targeted. Sums ranging between £5,000 up to close to £250,000 were taken by criminals from accounts.

Islanders in Jersey are being warned there is a heightened risk of scams following Storm Ciarán.

The government says fake contractors often try to prey on vulnerable people during times of crisis.

It also says the credentials of the business should be checked before anyone passes over any personal details or money.

https://www.itv.com/news/channel/2023-11-06/islanders-warned-about-risks-of-scams-following-storm-ciarn

Email and text fraud works by playing on your insecurities just long enough for you to make a mistake, says Martyn James.

t’s that time of year again when we need to talk about fraudsters. UK Finance have released their latest half-year fraud statistics that reveal that scammers have managed to pinch a whopping half a billion pounds in the first half of 2023.

https://www.scotsman.com/lifestyle/money/how-to-protect-yourself-from-every-kind-of-scam-martyn-james-4386956