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Impersonation Scams

What they look like and how to protect yourself from becoming the next victim.

Criminals will often pretend to be from the Bank or other organisations you trust to try and trick you into parting with your money. These scams can have a devastating impact on victims so it's vital you can spot them before it's too late.

You'll NEVER be asked by a genuine organisation to move money to another account for security reasons. If this happens it's a scam, no matter how convincing it seems. These are some of the way’s criminals will try and trick you into doing this:

  • Creating a sense of panic by saying your money is at risk and you need to transfer it to a 'safe' account. They may say there's a problem with your account or there's been insider fraud at the Bank and you need to help with an investigation. This is always a scam. 
  • Calling you on a number that appears to be the Bank or another genuine organisation. They use sophisticated technology to do this but just remember if you receive an unexpected and suspicious call end it immediately and don't give away any of your personal details.
  • Giving the impression they already know details about you and your situation and coming across as professional and warm. No matter how much they know or how friendly they are, don’t be fooled!
  • Talking quickly and making you feel under pressure. If you’re in any doubt, just hang up. We’d never be offended if you ended a genuine call with us because of security concerns.

These are just some of the tactics used, there’ll be many others but just remember:

NEVER move money if someone unexpectedly gets in touch, no matter the reason they give or how convincing it seems. If you do so, you could lose life-changing amounts of money. If you’re in any doubt hang up and chat it through with someone you trust or call back on a different number from an official website or on the back of your bank card. Use a different phone to do this if you can.