Scammers are always looking for ways to catch people off their guard and developing new tactics.
They may mimic trusted organisations’ logos, pose online as customer services departments, or even send out bogus “confirmation” emails – all as sneaky ways to make people believe they’re dealing with the real thing.
Here is a look at some scams which people may be particularly susceptible to over the summer, as more of us look to book getaways and buy tickets to events. Plus some new – and chilling – developments to watch out for…
1. Ticket scams
These scams can often originate on social media, with criminals pretending they have tickets to popular or sold-out events on offer. You could check whether the seller is a member of STAR (the Society of Ticket Agents and Retailers). And be wary of paying by bank transfer, which could leave you with little protection if something goes wrong. Also be cautious if you receive unsolicited emails about event tickets.
To minimise the risk of being left disappointed, stick to trusted organisations, such as the venue’s box office, official promoter or agent and well-known ticketing websites.
2. Cost-of-living scams
More than six million people received a £150 disability cost-of-living payment in June, as part of a wider package of Government support. Scammers may try to use people’s expectations that they are due to receive some money to trick them into handing over personal information or cash, so be wary of any text, phone call or email you receive out of the blue.
As well as fake promises of cost-of-living payments, scammers may pretend to be offering various discounts or refunds, such as for energy bills or tax rebates.
3. ‘Last-minute’ holiday deals that are too good to be true
Buying a break at the last minute can sometimes mean getting a bargain. But scammers will be waiting to catch people looking for price drops out. Recent victims of holiday fraud have lost around £2,372 on average, according to figures from scam reporting centre Action Fraud.
While a deal may look amazing, it’s important not to feel pressured into making a payment. Do some research by checking independent reviews online and double checking the website URL to make sure you are on a trusted website. You may also want to check whether the company involved is a member of trade association Abta (Association of British Travel Agents). Holidaymakers taking flights should check coverage under the Atol (Air Travel Organisers Licence) financial protection scheme.
But it’s also worth being aware that fraudsters may use fake registration numbers and copy organisations’ logos online to give the false impression that they have passed regulatory checks. They may even send out fake holiday confirmation emails, so that scam victims don’t realise they have been duped until they arrive at the airport.
Paying by credit card may help if something later goes wrong. Under Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act, the credit card company may have joint responsibility with the seller if goods or services are shoddy or do not materialise.
4. Fraudsters preying on you when something has gone wrong with your holiday
Consumer group Which? says fraudsters have been trying to trick people affected by flight cancellations, by setting up fake customer service accounts on social media. Instead of being put through to customer services, the links in these accounts could actually take you to phishing websites, which are designed to obtain your personal details.
The consumer champion suggests one way of spotting a potentially dodgy account is to check how many followers it has – as fake accounts may have far fewer followers than legit accounts.
Lisa Webb, Which? consumer law expert, says: “If you give away any details to a scammer, such as your email address, change the passwords on any affected accounts straight away. You should also contact your bank immediately if you think the fraudsters may have any of these details.”
5. Scams where you shouldn’t believe what you are seeing or hearing
There are concerns that tech advances could make scams even harder to differentiate from reality. There have been some signs of the impacts that AI could have on scammers’ tactics going forward, with consumer champion Martin Lewis recently branding a deepfake scam advert purportedly linked to an investment scheme as disgraceful. The scam ad used video and audio technology to create a fake likeness of Lewis.
More positively, advances in technology are also helping banks in the fightback against scammers. For example, Mastercard has a new tool that helps banks to get an instant rating that shows the risk of a payment being made to a fraudulent account.
Mastercard says that in partnership with UK banks including Lloyds Bank, Halifax, Bank of Scotland, NatWest, Monzo and TSB, it is using payments data to identify fraudulent accounts and prevent payments ever reaching them.
