Scams

Scams are a type of fraud where a person or business is deceived to the scammers advantage, often resulting in money being taken. Scams are commonly executed via a text, phone call or email.

Fraudsters and scammers will often try to trick people into giving personal details away by pretending there is a problem with a service an individual may be receiving from a reputable organisation (such as their bank or utility provider) or by promising that the individual may have a prize or money waiting.

If you are worried about scams or feel that you may have been a victim of a scam or fraud, the information below might help.

Common Scams

Common types of scams include:

Pretending to be PayPal or your Bank
Claiming they have your parcel as the delivery has failed- they may ask you to pay a ‘delivery fee’.
Pretending to be from a government agency such as DWP/HMRC.
Imitating companies, such as phone providers or energy suppliers.
Fake competitions- remember you cannot win a prize if you haven’t entered the competition.

How to avoid a scam

The idea of being scammed can be quite worrying, but there are some simple steps you can take to help you avoid being scammed. You should try to:

Create secure and unique passwords and most importantly don’t share your password with others.
Be alert and assess all information you receive before you act. It is better to be safe than sorry.
Only enter verified and official competitions and keep track of what you have entered into.

How to spot a scam

There are a number of ways to spot if you have been contacted by a scammer rather than a legitimate organisation. Signs can include:

Sometimes scam contacts have spelling mistakes or appear slightly unprofessional.
The contact may come from an unusual email address, such as a combination of random numbers and letters or an incorrect spelling of the business the scammers are imitating.
The call or text is from a mobile number.
They are asking for personal details such as your bank details.
The email may be plain, not showing the correct logo or contact information of the organisation the scammer is claiming to represent.
If you are unsure, contact the company they claim to be directly on their official number or verified website to clarify if it was them attempting to make contact with you.
On social media, large companies will often be verified with a blue tick and legitimate businesses often have a large amount of verifiable information on their page. Also check when the page was created and how many followers they have, competition scams are often on brand new pages with few or no other posts and may also have minimal followers/likes.
If you are on a website that could be a scam or unsafe, you will usually be notified by the browser and the URL bar will show an unlocked padlock. Safe websites will show a locked padlock symbol.

What to do if you think you have found a scam

Scams are a type of fraud and are illegal. It is important to report them if you spot them, this can prevent more vulnerable members of the community being scammed in future.
Forward any scam messages you have received to 7726, a free spam-reporting service provided by phone operators.
Delete any scam texts/emails.
Do not click on any links you have been sent that you suspect are a scam.
Hang up any phone calls as soon as your suspicions are raised. If it is a legitimate call, they will call back or contact you another way. Or you can call the company in question back on a verified number.
Contact Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040 or via Action Fraud website.

What to do if you have been a victim of a scam

Fraud was most common crime type between April 2022-March 2023, with an estimated 3.5 million incidents of fraud experienced (National Crime Agency statistic)