Warning. Gov.UK site? SCAM?

Update. I tried to tell the bank, but all 4? of the staff were busy, doing not a lot.
I checked my bank account today, and the amount has been repaid. I had taken screen shots of the on line conversation, just in case the bank needed proof of their promise to refund.

Thanks for the warning. Car tax due!

The first time I came up against this sort of thing was 15 years ago, when I wanted to buy a copy of a birth certificate. I thought I was buying one from the government site, but when the amount to pay flagged up, I knew that was not the government office site.

You still have to pay, but not such a large double figure amount.

I do exactly the same and didn’t realise for 3 months x but the Halifax cancelled it and re payed my account x

Yes, I have been caught in a similar scam. Government sites are hijacked. Really have to fight to get money returned. You have to be really careful that you are using a government site.

Yes, but not all numbers are programmed into the phone. Immediate family all have caller ID, but there are lots of people I only speak to occasionally or workmen who I speak to a lot over a short period then then the job is done, so they will not be in the system.

MOnica, don't you have caller ID. whereby the person's name is displayed, if a known contact ?

Sadly scammers are getting increasingly sophisticated so we all have to be much more vigilant. I'm always suspicious of lanline calls as very few of my friends call my landline. I often don't answer it if I'm busy as if the calls aren't actually scams they are mostly unwanted marketting calls. If the call is important from a friend they can leave a message. Junk callers never do!

I consedered a call blocking service but I actually quite enjoy winding up scammers if I'm in the mood and have the time to spare!

The problem is I do not ermember the number of all the people who ring me who I will happily speak to. So I can look at the number , not recognise it, yet it is someone I know.

About phone scam calls, I leave the answer machine on all the time. They never leave a message.
I only pick up the phone if I recognise the number.

We did years ago when applying for my sons provisional driving licence got charged an extra £20

My bank contacted me when someone about 200 miles away paid with my card for parking.
They have contacted us immediately when we have spent in Serbia, Macedonia, Albania.
They contacted us when someone was using our card in France.

I used to get 3 or 4 scam calls a day, I would just hang up. But since I installed a trucall phone filter we have had none at all. They don't even try to leave a message. My friends are all on a safe list, so just come straight through. An advantage of a home phone I think.

be wary of scanning QR codes to pay parking etc.
it is a well-known for scammers to cover the code with their own.
best to input the whole phone number.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/clddyp7y0nko

If you haven’t already done so Auntieflo please phone your bank and report it. If it’s fraudulent activity they may take more money.

When I was attempting to pay a car park online a few days ago my account was accessed by a scammer. A random payment of £6 popped up on my phone screen before I had completed the transaction. I immediately phoned my bank and reported suspicious activity. Within mins they confirmed it was fraudulent and cancelled my card. They advised me that scammers take a small taken amount to test if they’ve managed to access your account and hope it goes unnoticed. Then come back and take as much as they can. These scammers also signed me up to pay them a monthly subscription for some fake company.

The bank blocked the scammer from my account and advised me to be extra vigilant as when they realise they’ve been blocked they sometimes then phone and pretend they are bank staff and are trying to prevent you from being scammed. They are very devious.

I am always vigilant and keep a close eye on my bank transactions and felt quite shaken by how easily that happened.

Buttonjugs

Official government websites end with .gov, there is no UK.

On the contrary, official government sites are always 'gov.uk'

We have to all be aware that if you Google an address the list of websites that comes up, never choose the first couple, look at them thoroughly first before committing, companies pay Google for clicks so they appear at the top of any search you may make so it’s a scammers paradise.

The correct website:

www.gov.uk/vehicle-tax

cc

Buttonjugs

Official government websites end with .gov, there is no UK.

I think it does end with .UK?

indeed.
www.gov.uk/change-address-driving-licence

If you plan to travel to India I have heard from someone who has experienced this, that there are a large number of fake websites claiming they are the official site for getting an Indian visa. They are so very close to the real one - just one letter different for instance in the web address - that it is easy to make a mistake. They ended up paying a scammer over £100 and not having even started the genuine application process for the visa. PayPal allowed the payment to go through apparently and declined to take any action. So if you are going to India - be careful when you apply for your visa.

If you click on the name of the sender in the email header it should show where the email really came from

Buttonjugs

Official government websites end with .gov, there is no UK.

I think it does end with .UK?

Official government websites end with .gov, there is no UK.

You were lucky Chocolateloving gran, that your bank were so on the ball. We only picked up the £7.95 transaction because DH has a bank app and it pinged the debit. He wondered what I was buying so early in the morning, "what I had spent"! I said "nothing" and then we began to investigate. Nothing from our bank, HSBC!

I did the same, Auntieflo. My bank picked it up immediately. I felt a complete idiot but the kind voice on the bank phoneline explained how clever the nearly- the- same- looking- website is designed.
I did it over the phone the next time.