How to protect yourself from fraud

Authorised Push Payment (APP) fraud happens when you are tricked by a criminal into sending money by bank payment to an account that they control and which you do not.

In 2023, the number of cases of this type of fraud rose by 12 per cent to 232,429, resulting in losses of £459.7m, according to UK Finance, which represents 300 firms across the financial services industry.

New rules by the Payment Systems Regulator (PSR) came into force this week, which means all payment services providers, including banks and building societies, have to refund the majority of victims scammed in this way, up to a limit of £85,000.

These rules apply to payments made on, or after, 7 October 2024.

I’ve spoken to one victim who lost £25,000 to this type of fraud and welcomes the new rules. She says the onus is on the banks to strengthen their systems to prevent fraud from happening.

Mya, 45, runs a media production business and was conned out of £25,000 by fraudsters – a situation that – two years on – still leaves her feeling “absolutely sick” and ultimately distrustful of any call she receives from her bank.

She says: “I’ve got my bank’s phone number saved because my transactions get blocked all the time because I send international transactions.

“So, when my bank’s number came up on my mobile phone, I had no reason to suspect it wasn’t them. I now know that this is known as spoofing. Where the criminals managed to spoof my bank’s phone number.

“I answered and it was a male voice, British. He asked if I’d gone into my local branch that week to make a large transaction. I said no.

“He said: ‘We think we’ve seen someone who’s tried to move money from your account and we believe that they’ve got help from someone within the branch to do it.’

“They wanted my permission to help them build a case so they could report it to the fraud authorities.

“The caller said the transaction hadn’t gone through but they had CCTV footage of the attempt.

“He said, ‘are you willing to help catch somebody?’. I said yes and was told ‘right, the way we have to do this is we will get you to make an online transaction but we will stop it at our end. They wanted to see who authorised the payment from within the bank to help them build their case.”

“I was told this was a dummy account and that they would stop the transaction. I transferred £25,000 which was my transfer limit.

“The minute the transaction went through, the phone went dead. I instantly called back but as I did so, I felt sick. I knew in my gut something was wrong.

“I was on hold for 15 to 20 minutes before I got through to the fraud team, which is infuriating,

“The fraud service should be an instant pickup. If you think you’re being defrauded, it’s happening there and then. It’s ridiculous to have to wait to speak to someone.

“When I got through, the person I spoke to, well, if they worked for me, I would have sacked them on the spot. They basically said ‘you’ve been complicit in this. We’ll look at it but it’s quite unlikely you’ll get your money back.

“It was proper victim-blaming. I was absolutely furious and I felt absolutely sick. I mean, properly bile rising up in my throat. I don’t think I left the house for two days. I couldn’t eat properly. I didn’t want to speak to anyone. I was so upset.”

Mya did report the crime to the police and to Action Fraud, the national fraud and cybercrime reporting centre for the police.

Mya ended up being refunded half of her money.

“My bank said the bank who held the account I’d been conned into transferring my money to were half to blame. But of course, that’s not my bank so I couldn’t contact them.

“The fact I only got half my money back makes me think that my bank thinks I’m half-guilty. That they don’t quite believe me.

“I should have been fully refunded. I probably could have gone to the Financial Ombudsman Service about how I was treated by my bank, but I just felt so defeated. I’d reported it to my bank, the police, Action Fraud and I ended up with half my money back and being told there was nothing more that could be done. I just felt I’m done fighting the system.

“It’s effectively mugging. There aren’t any physical scars but there are mental ones.

“I’m really happy that the banks have to straight up refund people now because I think it’s going to force the banks to actually sort their systems out, to strengthen their systems instead of putting the blame on the customer.”

Remember, fraudsters are experts at what they do. It can happen to anyone.

Here’s the advice from the Take Five to Stop Fraud campaign on how to protect yourself and your money before making a payment:

· Take a moment to stop and think before parting with your money or personal information. It could keep you safe.

· Ask yourself, could it be fake? It’s okay to reject, refuse or ignore any requests. Only criminals will try to rush or panic you.

· Do your research and be suspicious of any too-good-to-be-true offers or prices.

· Remember, your bank or the police will never ask you to transfer money to a safe account.

· If you’re unsure or are suspicious then talk to a trusted friend or family member before making your payment.

For more information visit www.takefive-stopfraud.org.uk.

Contact your bank using a number that you know to be genuine, such as the one on the back of your bank card.

Report fraud to Action Fraud, the national fraud and cybercrime reporting centre for the police. Action Fraud doesn’t investigate crimes. Reports taken by Action Fraud are passed on to the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau (NFIB) who decide whether to refer cases to law enforcement.

You can contact Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040 or at www.actionfraud.police.uk.

If you’re not happy with the outcome of your complaint to your bank, you can complain to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS).

Talia Loderick is a money coach who helps people to understand and take control of their finances. Her website can be found here.