
How to spot a fake or fraudulent website
Don’t lose your money to online con artists. You can use our tips to identify and avoid fake, fraudulent or scam websites. Read on to find out what to watch out for when shopping online.
It can be hard to tell if something is a scam - that’s why they work. Fraudsters are cunning and adapt quickly to convince you into parting with your money.
Ask yourself the following questions. If you answer yes to any of them, there's a good chance it's a scam.
Cold calls or unexpected emails or messages should raise suspicion, especially if you’re asked to give personal or payment details.
It’s very unusual for legitimate organisations to contact you and ask for sensitive information if you’re not expecting them to.
If you're not 100% convinced about the identity of the caller, hang up and contact the company directly.
Never share your personal details with anyone if you can't confirm they are who they say they are.
Phone scammers will often try and get valuable personal data from you, and they can use this to steal your money, or even to use your identity to use fraudulently.
Scam websites often Vague contact details can be a PO box, premium rate number (starting ‘09’) or a mobile number.
If anything goes wrong it's important you can contact those involved. This will be difficult if you don't have accurate contact information.
Premium rate numbers are also a favoured trick for squeezing every penny they can out of you.
It's important you can discuss any agreements with your friends, family or advisors.
Asking you to keep quiet is a way to keep you away from the advice and support you need in making a decision.
Scams will often promise high returns for very little financial commitment. They may even say that a deal is too good to miss.
Use your common sense, if a deal is too good to be true, it inevitably is.
Fraudsters often try to hurry your decision making. Don’t let anyone make you feel under pressure - it’s OK to take a break and think things through if you’re not sure.
Sales staff should always give you time and space to make an informed decision, anyone who tries to rush you should not be trusted.
Emails or messages littered with spelling and grammar mistakes are a scam giveaway. Legitimate organisations will rarely, if ever, make spelling or grammatical mistakes in their emails to you because they’ve been put together by professionals and checked before they’re sent.
Don’t lose your money to online con artists. You can use our tips to identify and avoid fake, fraudulent or scam websites. Read on to find out what to watch out for when shopping online.
Fraudsters are cunning in their phone-scam tactics and it’s not always easy or obvious to tell straight away whether it’s a scam. Stay one step ahead with our tips.
Use our top 10 tips to safeguard yourself from fraudsters using email scams to steal your information and money.
Scammers have become more sophisticated in their bid to part us from our cash. Protect yourself from being scammed by following our tips.
Update your privacy settings so your profile and the things you post are only visible to your friends and family. You can choose settings that will stop strangers from sending you messages or friend requests. Ignore friend or connection requests from people you don’t know in real life.
A good email provider filters out suspect emails and sends them straight to your junk mail so you shouldn’t have to deal with them. We’d recommend using Gmail.
Call blockers stop unsolicited calls. Register for the Telephone Register Service. It’s free and if you’re signed up, companies shouldn’t call you. You can also cheaply buy phones that you can set up to only receive calls from known numbers, while blocking all other calls. Network providers also offer call blocking services, but some do charge a fee.
Sadly, if you’ve been scammed once, you’re more likely to be targeted again. It might be worth changing your number and/or email address if you’re being bombarded by cold calls and spam.
Anyone asking for your bank details over the phone, email or a message should raise suspicion, even if you’re familiar with the organisation.
Avoid giving out your phone number, email address, postal address and payment details whenever possible. Unfortunately, the trading of personal information and identities online is also very profitable for criminals.
Don’t let anyone persuade you to hand over your PIN. Your bank will never ask for your PIN - they just don’t need it to access your account information.
It’s annoying remembering lots of passwords, but setting a different password for each of your important accounts is a good idea. If one password becomes compromised, scammers can’t use it to access anything else. And the less sense the password makes, the better, so it’s not easy to guess.
Credit scoring services like Experian and Credit Karma allow you to see the history of all the credit products you’ve signed up for. By regularly checking your credit file you’ll pick up on any fraudulent applications that might have been made in your name.
Our emails will alert you to scams doing the rounds, and provide practical advice to keep you one step ahead of fraudsters.
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Although anyone can be scammed, scammers often target the elderly.
Elderly people are often targeted by scammers due to social isolation or loneliness. Read & share help and advice for older people to keep yourself, your family & friends safe.