TELEPHONE SCAMS

Energy Saving Scam
Trading Standards Institute (TSI) warns of dangerous energy saving scam targeting elderly
TSI is urging consumers to be aware of rogue telephone cold callers offering energy saving devices after trading standards up and down the country reported hundreds of complaints.
TSI are currently dealing with more than 200 complaints about people claiming to be their energy supplier or working in partnership with them, offering a plug in device which they say can save them 40 per cent off their energy bills. Trading standards have had a number of the items tested which not only failed to satisfy electrical safety standards but do not deliver any tangible energy savings.
Ron Gainsford from the Trading Standards Institute said: "Consumers are warned not to use the products as they pose a risk of fire and electrocution and a safety recall has been issued for the items traced so far.
"Unscrupulous criminals are using the rising energy prices as an opportunity to lure in cash strapped consumers - elderly people seem to have been deliberately targeted.
"The number of complaints we are currently dealing with is bound to be only the tip of the iceberg."
Westminster trading standards have been investigating the scam as the caller gives a London W1 Oxford Street address for the company.
Sue Jones from Westminster trading standards said: "The address they give is that of a virtual office provider, the companies involved in these scams are not actually situated there - we believe the call centre they use is based abroad and the appliances appear to be distributed by a number of individuals in the UK.
"We know that these fraudsters have been duping consumers across the country into paying £99 for the energy saving device and have been told the caller always appears to be very credible by already knowing the consumers' details, their energy supplier and sometimes some or all of the digits of their credit / debit card.
"Often consumers do not realise that they have been defrauded until they receive the dodgy looking device with instructions in broken English and the accompanying invoice which names an unknown supplier and often gives an American address."
So far four different suppliers have been named, 1 Stop Marketing Solutions, ITC Development Corp, Power Saver and Athico Ltd. but the fraudsters could be operating under other names too. Some of these names could be very similar to genuine companies - for example Power Saver Ltd, based in Tonbridge, Kent is not involved in this fraud.
The director of Athico Ltd appears to have been a victim of the scam himself. He fully cooperated with trading standards and the company has now ceased trading.
Advice to consumers
If consumers have responded to one of these cold calls they should report the matter to Action Fraud on www.actionfraud.org.uk - 0300 123 2040 - or Consumer Direct on 08454040506 . They should also contact their bank to stop their debit / credit card. If a device has been received they should not use it and dispose of it carefully.
Consumers should be cautious about giving out any personal or financial information. They should independently verify a caller's identity before agreeing to purchase any goods or services.

A useful link for information on saving energy is www.energysavingtrust.org.uk

Microsoft Windows Support Scam
WHICH? The which magazine warns that many people are falling for this scam. They report that victims are losing on average £529 from this scam and by installing malware on your computer they can do even more substantial damage.

Which? are not on their own. The http://money-watch.co.uk/8183/windows-support-scam-worsens web site tells us there is no end in sight for the Windows Support telephone scam previously reported.
As a reminder, households are receiving calls out of the blue from a so-called "Microsoft or Windows Support Centre", often sounding like an Indian call centre, who ask if your PC is running slowly, as they have detected a virus on it and would like to help you sort it out. For a fee of course.
There have been numerous reports from people receiving these calls, being taken in, and handing over cash. Costly and annoying certainly, but now it looks like there might be another similar tactic where the callers are actually installing software, whether it is genuine anti-virus software such as Kaspersky, or something more sinister like spyware which could potentially open you up to wider ID and bank fraud.
The Guardian says that this "takes the scam into new territory altogether, because it means that the scammers are now changing the setup of the computer, and while it's still fraud, it also now strays into fields such as the Computer Misuse Act".

If you have been taken in by this scam: