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Ask your fraud and scam questions to Take Five to Stop Fraud representative and Senior Fraud Prevention Officer Tony Blake - chance to win £150 voucher! NOW CLOSED

(156 Posts)

GNHQ have commented on this thread. Read here.

EllieGransnet (GNHQ) Tue 16-Jan-18 17:17:31

Finding out you have been a victim of fraud and/or a scam is never a pleasant experience and often figuring out whether a call/text/email is a scam and/or fraudulent can be quite difficult. Therefore Tony Blake, a Take Five representative and Senior Fraud Prevention Officer would love to answer your questions and queries on fraud and scams.

Here is what Take Five have to say: “Fraudsters are now very sophisticated so it is more important than ever that people are aware of the advice on how to protect themselves from becoming a victim of fraud. Always question any calls, texts or emails asking for your details out of the blue. Stop and think before you give away any information, no matter how legitimate the person sounds – remember – it’s My Money? My Info? I don’t think so. If you’re unsure, hang up and don’t reply and contact the organisation directly on a number you trust.”

Do you want to know the difference between a fraud and a scam? Perhaps you’re not sure what to look out for when it comes to knowing whether something is a scam or not? Or Maybe you have been a victim of a scam before and want to know how to protect yourself in the future?

Here is some more information on fraud expert, Tony Blake:
Tony Blake is a former police officer who currently works for the Dedicated Card and Payment Crime Unit (DCPCU) and Financial Fraud Action UK (FFA UK). Through a range of programs, Tony helps to proactively raise awareness and prevent Fraud.

Please post your questions on the thread below and we’ll choose 15 for Tony Blake to answer and then post a link to the responses as soon as possible. Everyone who posts a question will be entered into a prize draw where one GNer will win a £150 voucher of their choice (from a list).

Thanks and good luck
GNHQ

Standard Insight T&Cs apply

sylwright Thu 01-Feb-18 22:45:35

I have actually been contacted by my bank and I feel embarrassed to say that as it was a man with a nigerian accent, when he asked to check some security details with me I refused and said I would rather phone the bank and check that he was who he said he was. It turned out he was from the bank but I thought it was better to be safe than sorry.

Dan29 Thu 01-Feb-18 22:47:53

How do I stop scam callers getting through on my home telephone - to "fix my computer" etc?

fionajk42 Thu 01-Feb-18 23:32:24

We were called by a company regarding "investments" which were obviously bogus. After we received a brochure from them we contacted the Serious Fraud office, but they said that because we had not been defrauded they could not do anything. Shouldn't they be more proactive in preventing fraud rather than waiting until someone had been defrauded?

grannyqueenie Thu 01-Feb-18 23:40:59

If a friends email account seems to have been hacked and I’ve received a message that’s clearly not from my friend, am I also at risk ? + GrannyA’s question too.

hannahlw1985 Fri 02-Feb-18 01:41:21

I used to think I was quite good at spotting scam emails, but I am finding ever increasingly sophisticated ones made to look like they're from the bank I am with, so much so I have had to ring my bank to check with them just to be sure with not wanting to click on anything in the email. What is the easiest, and safest way to determine it is 100% a scam email without putting anything at risk to find out? I fear these scammers are becoming better all the time so would like to try and be one step ahead!

Bellroyd Fri 02-Feb-18 07:03:18

Is it inevitable that the goodies will always be one step behind the baddies and will it ever be possible to design out this kind of crime?

Piggypoo Fri 02-Feb-18 08:07:20

When I was the victim of identity theft, I felt it was up to me to prove that I wasn't the criminal, I want to know what the banks are going to do to help their customers. It seems to me to be too easy for the criminals to get away with this?

Sappysar Fri 02-Feb-18 08:19:53

What would be the your top 5 things people can do to prevent becoming a victim of identity theft and fraud.

emziemay Fri 02-Feb-18 09:52:23

When you receive a phone call and you know straight away it is a scam i.e. "Your computer has a virus" Should you say anything or just hang up without speaking?

mummabluberry Fri 02-Feb-18 11:02:44

How safe is it to make contactless payments?

maria08k Fri 02-Feb-18 12:39:38

My godmother ( who has never owned a washing machine in her life! - does all her washing by hand. ) was called the other day to be told that the warranty on her washing machine had expired, and that they needed her back details to set up another three year warranty for her. Lucky in her late 70's but still cognitive and knowing they were onto a scam asked them what brand of washing machine she has to which they replied Bosch. They had a shock when she turned to them and said she'd never owned a washing machine in her life!! How ruthless are these scammers! Its disgraceful!

cathryn1 Fri 02-Feb-18 16:25:47

I worry all the time about giving my card details over the phone or internet to pay for items. What if they write my details down or pass them on, I couldn't afford for anyone to take money out my account. I have overdraft facilities but don't use them unless its an emergency but could they take all this money out if they got hold of my details.

molly57 Fri 02-Feb-18 20:00:04

I'm too frightened to answer my telephone at home because I get so many scam calls. How do I stop these calls?

gill81uk Fri 02-Feb-18 22:18:07

How much information does someone actually need to commit identity fraud? Could they gain what they needed from filling in a form to enter a prize draw or similar? As someone who enjoys entering competitions this is a big concern for me.

tishist Sat 03-Feb-18 14:30:34

I recently received an e-receipt to my email address which also addressed me by name. Is this a scam or is it a genuine mistake by the store - i.e. do they select the details from an email database at the tillpoint and perhaps selected the wrong one?

theresacoo Wed 07-Feb-18 09:58:22

Where can I report scam phone calls? Or is it a waste of time?

Molly10 Wed 07-Feb-18 10:45:01

Wow, there are some great questions on here. It really does focus on how cyber vulnerable we are these days with the increase in technology.

I can't think of a great question right now but I'm looking forward to the replies to some of these.

Herbie9 Wed 07-Feb-18 11:31:39

I've had emails saying I'm due a tax refund mentioning an amount. It certainly looks an authentic email from HM Taxes but on checking with them it is a scam. They are still trying to contact me from time to time but I always delete them straightaway.

DS64till Wed 07-Feb-18 11:37:36

I get the odd letter /circular now and again with someone else’s name on it.
I ring the companies concerned and they don’t seem too worried. Should I be? I’ve lived here for 30 years from the House being new

quizqueen Wed 07-Feb-18 14:25:05

I like to think I can recognise scam phishing emails and am constantly blocking them especially if they are from a company I don't have an account with and many I report but they just seem to bounce back another day under a different email address. How can they be blocked permanently, particularly ones trying to sell me Viagra, penis extensions etc!!!!

Charleygirl Wed 07-Feb-18 14:33:05

I agree with "Cathryn1* I also do not like to pay for goods over the phone using a bank card. They have my personal details so what else can they do?

Charleygirl Wed 07-Feb-18 14:35:39

I do a lot of shopping on Amazon and I was worried about giving bank details on line so what I did was to set up a separate account with a small amount of money in it eg £200. I would not like to lose that but it is preferable to losing thousands. I can always top up that amount if necessary.

Cambia Wed 07-Feb-18 14:49:07

Open Banking - how safe is it? Card scamming - recently when abroad all our credit cards were used to purchase items (not by us) and we still had the cards! Swift work by the card companies meant that the fraudsters didn’t get much but how did they get the info? From the Internet or from scamming at the airport? Very careful to use VPN etc at airports when on open Wi-fi.

Lunchtimelady1 Wed 07-Feb-18 15:53:21

Is there a central site for reporting scam calls/phishing no matter what the source? Also I can't help feeling that the new Open Banking system,which in theory should be helpful,may turn out to be an easier way for criminals to obtain my details. Am I being too pessimistic?

babyroo Wed 07-Feb-18 15:59:51

If I am a victim of fraud who is there to help? Because recently I was a victim of a scam but the police were not interested.