Warning as scammers steal £130m in 6 months

The number of ‘impersonation’ scams more than doubled in the first half of the year, new figure

Finance industry trade association, UK Finance, say there were 33,115 reports – with criminals stealing £129.4m through this type of fraud alone.

In the same period last year, there were 14,947 impersonation scam cases which led to £57.9m being stolen.

Impersonation scams involve criminals posing as a trusted organisation such a bank, the police, a Government department or a service provider.

The figures came as UK Finance geared up for Take Five Week – a campaign which urges people to stop to think, challenge requests from people and protect themselves, when asked for their information or money.

Scammers trick victim into transferring money using a range of cover stories – include claiming they need to protect an account from fraud, that a fine or tax needs to be paid, or that a refund sent by mistake must be returned.

Take Five fraud expert Tony Blake, said: "Criminals are experts at pretending to be someone they are not.

"If someone contacts you unprompted and asks for personal or financial information, stop and take a moment to think. Only criminals will put pressure on you to act quickly.

"Remember, it's OK to say no and contact the organisation through a route you know to be genuine."

He added: "The banking and finance industry works to tackle fraud, investing millions in advanced technology and working closely with the Governmentand law enforcement to stop the criminal gangs."