Another year, another disturbing spike in the number and frequency of scam phone calls and text messages that we are hearing about.
Butt Miller Director, Paula Sparrow received numerous calls over the past week, each purporting to be in relation to National Insurance, the caller ID numbers were different each time but on every occasion the message contained a request to ‘press 1’ in order to confirm NI details.
Paula’s experience is far from unique, indeed on Tuesday this week, the Head of Action Fraud issued the following warning about this precise attempted scam ‘We are asking the public to remain vigilant and be cautious of any automated calls they receive mentioning their National Insurance number becoming compromised’.
And there’s more
We have also heard reports of text messages being received, alerting recipients to a tax refund that they are due, again this hoax is designed to gather information and should be treated with caution.
Consumer champions Which? Offers the following great advice about identifying possible phone scams
- Is the caller using threatening language, or trying to pressure you into acting quickly?
- Have you been contacted out of the blue?
- Are you being asked to share personal details over the phone?
Incidents can be reported to Action Fraud via their website here, and please remember that if you feel you may have been scammed into giving away personal information, you should contact your bank, building society and credit card provider with details.
…and finally, although not finance related, we are aware of scam emails and texts claiming to be sent by the NHS regarding COVID-19 vaccinations. The messages are very convincing so please double check before clicking on any link, once again the Which? website features details of these scams and their variants.
…and finally, finally, please don’t have nightmares, scammers are particularly active at the moment, taking advantage of extraordinary conditions, but with vigilance and care we can all help to make sure their efforts are in vain.
