‘Call centre scam cost me £170,000’

Criminals are posing as customer service agents of online banks in a new fraud that has tricked victims out of six-figure sums. Harry Brennan reports

Online banking customers face a new danger, as con men posing as customer service agents are duping people out of their life savings. When searching online for customer service phone numbers, people are clicking on Google links to websites they think are those of legitimate companies but are in fact run by criminals.

Fraudsters who pose as helpful staff from money transfer service TransferWise and digital bank Revolut have tricked victims into handing over six- figure sums by setting up “copycat” websites, running bogus helplines and advertising them via fake Google adverts.

The fraudsters have targeted individuals who were trying to speak with a real person over the phone instead of talking to staff via online “chat rooms” or getting help through pre-prepared answers to frequently asked questions.

One 66- year- old Telegraph Money reader was left distraught after she lost £168,000 to call centre fraudsters. She was transferring the sum after selling her home in Holland and moving back to Britain in her retirement. She called TransferWise to confirm the transaction but was unaware that her Google search had led her into the scammers’ trap. Confidence tricksters then convinced her to download software to her mobile phone that allowed them to take control of her device and her money.

TransferWise offered the pensioner a full refund after intervention from the Telegraph’s consumer champion, Katie Morley (read the full account on page 12).

Customers of Revolut have also contacted Ms Morley after succumbing to the scam. One, who was looking for help with a transfer to buy a holiday home in Greece, lost £185,000 to con artists posing as the bank, although Revolut refunded the cash before the Telegraph became involved.

Scammers pay for the links to appear at the top of search results by buying “ads” – the most lucrative part of Google’s business. The technology giant now faces fierce criticism for failing to do enough to prevent these scams.

Google said it had taken down 10 million “bad ads” a day last year. But it still made $135bn (£100bn) from ads last year – 84pc of its profits. It said it had policies in place to protect against fraud and would take action against anyone who broke the rules.

A spokesman said: “Consumers often look online for help with financial decisions but there are bad actors who purposely set out to mislead or take advantage of them. Protecting these consumers and the credible businesses operating in this area is a priority.”

TransferWise said it had customer service agents available on the phone in 15 languages, but it also has a large automated online “help centre”. Revolut does not have a human call centre at all, just an automated phone service and an “in-app chat” service.

Both laid some of the blame on Google. TransferWise said it had told the internet giant about the fake site in October and asked for it to be removed. After Google failed to take action it had escalated its request, it said.

A spokesman said: “We do not have any power to remove these websites ourselves. Faster movement from hosting providers, and Google, would go a long way in safeguarding our customers from these scams in the future.”

Revolut said: “As soon as such fake ads are brought to our attention we immediately report them to Google and request that they be taken down. Unfortunately, the timing for this process is dependent on Google.”

Gareth Shaw of Which?, the consumer group, said it was too easy for scammers to dupe victims. “People looking for customer service help, particularly from financial institutions, should be able to trust that adverts displayed for these companies on Google are legitimate,” he said.

He echoed calls from the Financial Conduct Authority, the City regulator, for the Government to force internet firms to do more to protect people online.