Being aware of common threats, knowing how they work and what to look out for can help protect your business against falling victim to fraud.
Here are some of the common techniques fraudsters attempt to use to trick you into giving away your business information, banking details or even access to your computer.
Quickly redirecting you to your bank, so you can report scams and suspected fraudulent activity.
In an initiative to support people who have fallen victim to a scam, or have been approached by fraudsters with potential scams, we’re supporting the launch of the new phone number, 159.
Now, when you call the number 159 you’ll be connected to a system which will redirect you to your bank. Because the sooner you report fraud, the sooner your bank can take the right action for you.
This line is not for general banking enquiries. Fraud is an extremely serious issue and this line is a service offered to help those affected or who are at risk.
Criminals steal millions of pounds each year from individuals and small businesses via fraud; pretending to be either a bank or well-known organisation. But many cases of fraud and scams remain unreported. If you are asked to move your money away from your account or feel pressurised into making a payment, STOP! And call 159.
159 is a vital tool to help prevent and combat the damage being caused by fraudsters, as well as protect and support the public. Calling 159 allows you to get in contact with your bank if you’re worried about:
To stop fraudsters monitoring your call history, try and call 159 from a different device you may have communicated on with them.
Important: remember, 159 will never call you. If you receive a call from 159, or someone posing as a representative from this service— this is a scam.
Stop. Think, ‘fraud?’ Call 159.
The internet brings many benefits, but it also gives criminals the chance to steal your personal or financial information through computer malware, fake emails, websites or social media accounts.
Criminals can create fake websites to look exactly like the genuine one but with slightly amended web addresses. These are then presented to victims when they search for their bank through search engines.
If you think that you may have revealed your security details, fallen victim to fraud, or notice any unusual activity on your account, please contact us:
For credit card customers – +44(0)345 600 6000
For business banking customers – +44(0)3457 213 213
Fraudsters send fake messages which appear to be authentic and from legitimate organisations.
Scam messages can be very convincing and are popular with fraudsters. Fraudsters will deliberately mimic the contact details of the Bank, Police or other trusted companies to hide their true identity.
Scam messages will often imply a sense of urgency encouraging you to act fast, e.g. to call a phone number included in a text message to stop a fraud payment or include a request for personal information, or banking details such as password or security credentials.
Scam messages can lead to you speaking to fraudsters, who may try to trick you into providing account security such as; verification codes or token codes to move money out of your account without you realising. Remember we will never ask you to provide verification codes or token codes over the phone.
Some scam messages will contain links or attachments which, if accessed, will take you to a fake website that prompts you for your online banking details. The fraudsters then use your details to access your account(s) and steal your money.
Accessing fake websites or opening attachments in scam messages may install malware, a type of malicious software. This steals information and can be so sophisticated that it can work in the background to move your money, or trick you into believing that you've been unsuccessful in logging onto your online banking page and prompts you to re-enter your security details, which the fraudster captures.
For credit card customers – +44(0)345 600 6000
For business banking customers – +44(0)3457 213 213
Fraudsters may phone you out of the blue and claim to be from the bank, police, or other reputable organisations, in an attempt to obtain your personal information and banking details.
Fraudsters may even try to trick you into allowing them access to your computer to steal your money.
Regardless of how professional or convincing a caller sounds, remember the bank, police or other trusted organisations will never contact you by any means to:
Always stop and think – is this a genuine call? Take Five to stop fraud.
When criminals pose as these representatives they may try to coerce you in to downloading an app or software on to your mobile or computer which allows them to access your device.
Criminals will use a range of methods to contact you, typically through a text message or a telephone call. Once they’ve made contact with you, they will pose as a representative from a genuine organisation such as the Bank, the Police, a government department or a broadband and telecommunications company. They’ll try to persuade you to act, often with claims that there has been suspicious activity, that there has been a security compromise or that you are due a refund of some sort. Here’s some examples of tactics they’ll use:
The Police or Fraud Department – They may tell you there is fraud on your account and that you need to move your money to keep it safe. They may even say they need your help with an investigation, but not to tell us as it could be an internal issue.
HMRC – You must pay an urgent tax bill or face prosecution.
Broadband and telecommunication companies – Problems with your broadband or that your internet is compromised.
When criminals pose as these representatives they may try to coerce you in to downloading an app or software on to your mobile or computer which allows them to access your device. During the conversation, they’ll trick you and ask you to log in to your online bank account. Once you do this, the software you have downloaded allows them to take over your computer, enabling them to steal your money.
Remember these key tips:
Invoice re-direction scams can result in losses that run into hundreds of thousands of pounds. It happens when a fraudster tricks a business into changing bank account payee details for a known supplier.
All businesses, regardless of size, can become a victim of fraud. To protect your business from this threat always verify a request to change bank payment details. Contact your supplier directly using established contact details, before implementing the change or completing the payment.
If you hold a business account with us and think you may have fallen victim to an invoice redirection scam contact us immediately.
Fraudsters will do their research. They will often be aware of the detailed relationships between businesses and their suppliers and know when regular payments are due.
Fraudsters may attempt to intercept genuine invoices and change the bank payment details.
Alternatively, they may contact the business by telephone, email, letter or fax, posing as a trusted supplier to make a formal request to change the bank account payment details held.
If the business does not validate the change and settles the invoice, the funds go to an account that the fraudster has access to.
The fraudulent payment is then quickly transferred, often to outside of the UK, making the recovery of funds extremely difficult.
Often the business does not realise they have been scammed until the genuine supplier chases for non-payment, in some cases this can be weeks or even months later. At this point, it is virtually impossible for the business to get the stolen funds back.
Alternative reports of this scam have included fraudsters falsely claiming to be a senior member of a business, providing account details and instructing an urgent payment to be processed. If the business completes the request, the funds go to an account the fraudster has access to.
Any unexpected requests to change or update payment details for a regular supplier.
Whether made by telephone, email, letter, or fax, if your business is contacted ‘out of the blue’ to amend bank payee details always treat this as a potential warning sign.
Any unexpected, urgent payment requests made via email, text or fax, which supposedly appear to have been made by an internal senior member and provides account details.
Read more about invoice scams around Christmas
Protect your business by:
If you hold a business account with us and have fallen for an invoice re-direction scam recently or may have received a fraudulent request, contact us immediately.
If you don’t bank with us and have lost money to an invoice re-direction scam report it to Action Fraud, the UK’s national fraud reporting centre at www.actionfraud.police.uk or by calling 0300 123 20 40
More information about protecting your business from fraud is available in the scams booklets below.
Little book of big scams (business edition)
Financial Fraud Action UK Leaflet
Information is also available by visiting the Financial Fraud Action website.
Fraudsters will try to trick you in any way they can, including offering you the chance to earn money. Fraudsters recruit 'money mules' who are used, sometimes unwittingly, to transfer illegally obtained money between different bank accounts.
Criminals often pose as employers, contacting you online or in person with offers to "earn from the comfort of your own home" or "make easy cash, with no experience necessary".
The scam works by a participant being asked to receive money into their bank account and then to transfer it to another account, keeping some of the cash for themselves.
Students, people who are unemployed, new residents to the country or anyone in financial hardship are often the most at risk to this type of scam.
If you transfer money through your account that is from the proceeds of crime, you're a money mule. Even if you are not directly involved in the crimes that generate the money paid into your account.
If you fall for this type of scam and move money on, you are acting illegally and could be prosecuted and imprisoned for up to 14 years.
Your bank account will be closed and you will have problems applying for credit, loans or mobile phone contracts in the future.
Account takeover fraud is when criminals get unauthorised access to a person’s account and use it for some type of personal gain.
It often involves a criminal calling you unexpectedly pretending to be from your bank or the police.
They begin casting a spell on you, putting you into panic mode by telling you that your account has been compromised and is no longer safe.
They may try to access your account through our mobile app or online banking. Their aim is to get your online banking username, password and the verification code we send you so they can log in on their own device and access your accounts.
QR code scams, also known as quishing (QR code phishing), are on the rise. QR codes are a type of barcode that store information in pixels in a square-shaped grid. You may have used them when ordering from a menu at a restaurant, to get into an event, at a car park, or to post a package. QR codes can be read easily and quickly by your mobile device which makes them a great way to share information.
If you think that you may have revealed your security details, fallen victim to fraud, or notice any unusual activity on your account, please contact us immediately on:
For business banking customers +44(0)3457 213 213
For commercial banking customers +44(0)3457 213 213
For credit card customers +44(0)345 600 6000
If you have seen a scam email claiming to be from us, please let us know by forwarding it to ihaveseenascam@co-operativebank.co.uk