WHAT TO DO IF YOUR AMAZON ACCOUNT IS HACKED

CALL Amazon on 0800 279 7234 to report the fraud on your account. You may be advised to change your password.

Next, report the incident to your bank. But, instead of describing it as fraud, tell it that you want to dispute the transactions you did not authorise and reverse the payment.

If you paid by debit card, ask the bank to claw back the money using ‘chargeback’ rules. If you paid by credit card, ask for a refund under Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act. Adam French, of the consumer group Which?, says the key to getting your money back is how you report the incident. ‘It is important that your bank does not treat the transactions as fraud if you want to get your money back quickly, as fraud cases take far longer to investigate.

‘Once you have asked for the payments to be reversed, you can tell your bank you are worried your bank details may have been exposed and ask for a new card.’

Beware of any unsolicited calls from banks and other organisations asking for personal information. These could be scam calls from fraudsters who now have your details.

Mr French adds that there is a limited timeframe with chargeback claims, so be sure to make them within 120 days of the payments being made.

If you received the goods, you may need to send the items back, and provide proof of postage, before your bank will agree to refund you.