Threats and Scams​

Threats come in a variety of forms, some being relatively innocuous, more a nuisance than a danger, whilst others may pose a very serious threat in financial terms or may even pose a threat of violence against the person. On this page, we try to draw attention to the type of threat to watch out for and give some examples.

A scam is a scheme to “con” someone out of their cash. Many scams take the form of bogus and fraudulent offers sent by post, telephone or e-mail. The Office of Fair Trading reports that every year, three million people fall victim to scams, losing an average of £850 each. Fake lottery and prize draw wins, bogus psychic predictions, get-rich-quick investment cons and ‘miracle’ health cures are just some of the tricks scammers try. There have been many telephone scams. Sometimes they are obvious, or “too good to be true” but that is not always the case. Here’s a video showing some of the more “popular” ones!

See here for more details

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Take Five

Take Five, a national awareness campaign led by FFA UK (part of UK Finance), backed by Her Majesty’s Government and delivered with and through a range of partners in the UK payments industry, financial services firms, law enforcement agencies, telecommunication providers, commercial, public and third sector, urges you to stop and consider whether the situation is genuine – to stop and think if what you’re being told really makes sense.

Action Fraud

Action Fraud is the UK’s national reporting centre for fraud and cyber crime where you should report fraud if you have been scammed, defrauded or experienced cyber crime. If a crime is taking place – call 999!

Financial Conduct Authority

Avoid investment and pension scams using the Financial Conduct Authority’s website.

The Pensions Regulator

Scammers are after your pension pot. They know you can now access your savings in new ways and will try to lure you with promises of upfront cash and one-off ‘deals’ with guaranteed high returns. Learn how to spot the signs and give yourself the best possible protection against pension predators by following this five-step guide.

Gov.uk

HM Government advice on protecting your land and property from fraud. Links to land registry guides – also available in Welsh.

Which? Guide

If you’ve been the victim of credit or debit card fraud, acting quickly is essential. Read “Which?” guides to find out what you should do in the event of card fraud and how to contact the Financial Ombudsman Service if you need to.