Protecting young people like Evie, the star of our new ‘Staying Safe Online’ video, from the dangers of fraud and scams whilst using the internet is increasingly important. The internet is becoming an inseparable part of young people’s lives, so it’s important they understand how to stay safe online.

The Society is committed to educating our younger members, about how they can protect themselves from fraud and scams.

That's why we’ve teamed up with Evie, to produce a short video where she explains how young people can protect themselves online. The video provides hints and tips to equip young people with tools that will help them throughout life.

A major event, like the Coronavirus pandemic, or the Cost-of-Living crisis can provide scammers with a whole host of new opportunities.  You will have no doubt seen, or heard about, many reports of different frauds and scams

Traditionally, scams have been targeted at the most vulnerable and socially isolated individuals, however, anyone can fall victim to a scam. Scammers are sophisticated and opportunistic, and will try to obtain personal information or money from victims in many different ways.

A scammer may try to approach you on your doorstep, over the phone, online or by post. Within financial services, the types of scams being used often changes after the initial shock of a major event.

Some of the most common scams are:

Energy discount scams – as energy bills continue to rise scammers are seeking to take advantage of unsuspecting customers. Be aware of emails or text messages offering things such as discounts, rebates, energy saving boxes and eco plugs. Government backed schemes are automatic; there is no need to apply for them and you will not be contacted by the Government or Ofgem asking you to share personal information or bank details in order to benefit

Payment in advance - Also known as an advance fee scam, , scammers may ask you to hand over an upfront fee - usually between £25 and £450 - when applying for a loan or credit that you never get, or to receive a prize or service

Ticket fraud - Criminals can either set up fake websites or social media profiles to sell tickets for major events e.g., sports, music or theatre. Websites can often look genuine and you may also be sent tickets, which you only know are fake when you arrive at the venue

Charity donation scams - This is where scammers take advantage of our generosity when giving to charity. They may claim to be raising money for a fake charity or be impersonating a well-known charity. 

Electricity and energy scams - These scams often involve being offered cut-price energy for those who use pre-payment meters. People are offered a cut price deal on their doorstep, for example £50 worth of electricity meter top-up for a cash payment of £25.

Holiday scams – These scams involve you paying for a holiday that doesn’t exist. Fraudsters use fake online adverts, bogus calls, emails and messages offering holidays at a very low price. They may use stolen images of hotels or apartments and pass them off as their own. Typically you’re told to pay in cash or by bank transfer

Traditional doorstep crimes - Bogus tradesmen, door-to-door sales or doorstep fraud involves fraudsters trying to scam you after knocking at your door. They may try to convince you that your property has broken roof tiles and offer to fix them, pressure you into buying goods from them at the door, complete fake surveys to obtain your personal information or carry out bogus charity collections

Romance scams – These involve people being duped into sending money to criminals who go to great lengths to gain your trust and convince you that you are in a genuine relationship. They will then ask for money for a variety of emotive reasons e.g. needing emergency medical care or to pay for transport costs

Social media targeting – If people post online about repairs they may need, or other work on their property, this can be exploited by individuals who then offer to carry out the work. Please be careful what you are posting on social media; if a job is really urgent, either use someone you have used before or someone from a reputable approved site e.g. TrustATrader, Checkatrade, etc

How to protect yourself:

• Use the FCA's Financial Services Register and Warning List to check who you are dealing with
• Do not give any personal information (e.g., name, address, bank details, email or phone numbers) to any organisations of people before verifying they are who they say they are. If they claim to be from a bank or building society, call the main telephone number from their website and check – if it’s us, we won’t mind at all
• Make sure your computer, laptop, tablet and mobile phone has up to date anti-virus software installed. Make sure you don’t ignore any updates. Use strong passwords and enable two-factor authentication (2FA) wherever possible
• Many frauds start with a phishing email – remember that we, and your other banks or building societies will never sent you an email asking you to click on a link and confirm your bank details. Do not trust these emails even if they look genuine. As we said previously, the best way to get in touch with us, or any other organisation, is to use a known email address or phone number; ours can be found on our website
• Protect your information – regularly get a copy of your credit file and check it for entries you don’t recognise. Make sure you destroy and preferably shred any paperwork with your personal details and bank / card details on.
• Find out more information from organisations such as Action Fraud

If you think someone is trying to trick you into handing over money or personal details, Stop, hang up, and call 159 to speak directly to your bank.

159 works in the same was as 101 for the police od 111 for the NHS. It’s the number that you can trust to get through to your bank safely and securely This breaks the scam journey when you are at most risk of being manipulated into making a payment.

When should you call 159?

Call 159 if;

• Someone contacts you claiming to be from their bank - even if they do not seem suspicious
• You are contacted by someone claiming to be an authority figure (such as the police) and told to transfer money - even if the request seems genuine
• You receive a call about a financial matter, and it appears suspicious

When calling 159, you will be taken through an option menu in which each bank that has signed up to the service is read aloud. You are then able to use your telephone keypad to be put through to your bank. If you don't bank with one of the banks taking part and you call the service, you will be advised how to contact your bank directly.

The following banks are currently part of the scheme; Bank of Scotland, Barclays, Co-Operative Bank, First Direct, Halifax, HSBC, Lloyds, Metro Bank, Nationwide Building Society, NatWest, Royal Bank of Scotland , Santander, Starling Bank, Tide, TSB and Ulster Bank.

Calls to 159 are charged at the national call rate, usually part of the included minutes in most phone tariffs. 

You can visit Stop Scams UK for more information.

Remember, 159 will never call you.

Several initiatives have been set up to try to help combat the issue of scams, e.g. Take Five to Stop Fraud and Friends Against Scams. Friends Against Scams is a National Trading Standards Scams Team initiative, which aims to protect and prevent people from becoming victims of scams by empowering individuals to take a stand against them.

In addition to this, the England Illegal Money Lending Team (IMLT) work to raise awareness on illegal money lenders (loan sharks) and are committed to supporting individuals who have borrowed from these lenders. The Stop Loan Sharks helpline is there to support victims, their friends, family members and the wider community to encourage people to come forward if they suspect someone is suffering at the hands of loan sharks.

For more information on how you can prevent falling victim to fraud or a scam, including advice on how to report any suspicious activities, please visit the following sites:

• Dudley Trading Standards
• Take Five to Stop Fraud
• Stop Scams UK
• Become a scam marshal
• Friends Against Scams
• HMRC phishing and bogus emails
• Reporting fraud and cyber crime
• Stop Loan Sharks