Scams Awareness Fortnight 2022
*PLEASE BE AWARE THIS IS AN OLDER POST AND THERE MAY BE A MORE UP TO DATE POST, OR UPDATED INFORMATION AVAILABLE ON https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/ *
June 13th - 26th is Scams Awareness Fortnight, an annual campaign run by Citizens Advice with the Consumer Protection Partnership (CPP). We want to help residents become #ScamAware, enabling them to confidently spot scams, take the right action and share experiences to help others.
Estimates from the Crime Survey for England and Wales (CSEW) suggest there were 5.1 million fraud offences in the year ending September 2021. This was a 36% increase compared to the year ending September 2019. This year, the campaign will focus on scams and the cost of living crisis. The increased financial pressure many are facing has put more people into difficult situations and scammers are likely to exploit these situations, so empowering the public to protect themselves and others from scams will have heightened importance.
How do I spot a scam?
Anyone can fall victim to a scam and they have unfortunately become part of our daily lives. There are multiple warning signs you can look out for to recognise a scam:
Is it too good to be true?
Do you know the person contacting you?
Have you been urged to respond quickly?
Have you been asked to pay urgently or in an unusual way?
Have you been asked to give away personal information?
Scams can be difficult to recognise and if you are unsure, you can use Citizens Advice’s Online Scams Helper to check whether something is a scam.
With the cost of living crisis, we’re seeing lots of different types of scam emerging as scammers take advantage of residents under financial pressure. Some to watch out for are scammers pretending to be energy companies, fake sales representatives selling counterfeit shopping vouchers, or sending out phishing emails pretending to offer an energy rebate or government support to obtain people’s personal information.
How do I report a scam?
If you’ve spotted a scam, reporting it can help stop scammers and keep others protected. Don’t feel embarrassed about reporting a scam - scammers are clever and it can happen to anyone.
If you’ve fallen victim to a scam, you should contact your bank immediately to let them know what’s happened. You should also change any relevant log-in details and check for viruses if the scam was online. If you’ve lost money, you may be able to get it back if you’ve paid by card, bank transfer, PayPal or direct debit depending on the circumstances.
You can report scams through Citizens Advice’s Scams Action Service whether they’re online or offline, and the information will be passed onto Trading Standards who will decide whether to investigate or not. To speak to a Scams Action adviser, call 0808 250 5050. You can also report scams by calling the Citizens Advice Consumer Service on 0808 223 1133.
Scams can be reported to other organisations, which can increase the chance of scammers being caught and stopped. To report a scam to Action Fraud, the national reporting centre for fraud, go to their website or call 0300 123 2040.
You can find other ways to report scams, such as via email or post, on the Citizens Advice website.
How can I protect myself from potential scams?
When purchasing something online, don’t let yourself be rushed into making decisions quickly. Take your time and never give out money or personal information to anyone you don’t know or trust. You should take your time to research the company or website you’re purchasing from to make sure they are legitimate, you can search for a company's details on the GOV.UK website. You can also ensure you have extra protection when buying online by using a debit or credit card to pay.
Scammers can be very smart so always be wary and suspicious, don’t be afraid to ask for ID or contact an organisation to ensure they are legitimate. Don’t click or download anything you don’t trust, ensure your passwords for online accounts are strong, and make sure your antivirus software is up to date.
You can help protect others from scams by talking openly about your experiences and spreading awareness of potential scams.
If you need help or advice about scams, get in touch with our team today - call us free on 0808 2787 801, or complete the contact form on our website to speak to one of our advisers.
