Trading Standards officers offer advice over scams

BITCOIN fraud is among the latest scams in Warwickshire revealed by Trading Standards officers.

They have revealed a list of all calls they have received by concerned residents.

With this, they have issued some advice to people to be on their guard so that they don’t fall victim to them.

They have also provided some top tips for residents to follow.

The recent scams the team has received reports about are:

Bogus Bitcoin accounts: Warwickshire residents have reported scams related to the setting up of Bitcoin accounts.

Many legitimate businesses require copies of documentation such as driving licences to verify identity and help prevent money laundering.

Unfortunately, bogus businesses often ask for the same information which they use to commit identity fraud and steal money.

Warwickshire residents have reported setting up Bitcoin and similar accounts and transferring money to them, only for them to later turn out to be bogus.

In the UK, almost all financial service activities must be authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). The FCA maintains a Register of regulated firms and individuals as well as those they are aware of that may be running deliberate scams, with prominent warnings.

The FCA advise people to: Always check the firm you’re dealing with is listed on the Register.

Never provide your personal or financial information to unexpected cold callers.

Do your homework on the business you are interested in using before you open an account or transfer any money.

More Tax Refund Complaints: Warwickshire Trading Standards has received further complaints from residents who have received unexpected letters from ‘tax’ companies.

The letters imply the resident already has an established relationship with the business when they don’t, that work to complete their tax rebate application is already nearly complete and that the business is charging a fee of nearly 50 per cent.

Trading Standards has stressed that it wants to make residents aware that they should think twice before providing personal or financial information to any individual or business that contacts them unexpectedly.

“It can be hard to tell a good trader from a bad one in such circumstances and residents are urged to do their homework first,” the Trading Standards team said.

“A good starting place for residents requiring free information regarding tax refunds, tax credits and related matters is the government’s official website.”

Bogus Text Messages: Fraudsters are sending bogus text messages to resident’s smart phones.

The text messages purport to come from a friend or relative asking the recipient to pay an invoice. The messages are sent from a different number, but the fraudsters state this is because the phone is new or temporary due to ‘water damage.’

The advice is to not respond to them or click on any links they may contain. Delete them immediately.

Bogus Companies on Social Media: Warwickshire Trading Standards says it is receiving more complaints from consumers who have not received the goods or services they purchased from traders advertising on social media.

Sometimes these businesses turn out to be completely bogus.

Tips include:

Try to use online traders you know and trust. Look at their reviews and ask friends and family.

Beware of social media accounts that may have been set up very recently with lots of favourable feedback that sounds similar, this could be an indication of fake reviews and a bogus trader.

If you can, find out where the trader is located. Do they have a genuine address and landline telephone number, or can you only contact them via a social media message or by email? If the latter is the case, then beware!

Many bogus websites advertise popular and hard to find products.

But buy from a bogus website and you will only receive a fake or no product at all. Always use a secure form of payment to pay for goods or services.

Never simply transfer money. For purchases over £100, consider using a credit card. In some circumstances this will give you ‘Section 75’ extra protection.

Don’t enter your card details into a website unless it is secure. Look out for the padlock sign and ‘https’ in the web address.