What to do if you've been scammed
- Published
Anyone can be the target of a scam. It can be very upsetting, but thankfully, there's lots of positive action you can take. Here ar some steps you can take if you think you have been scammed:
1. Firstly, DON'T PANIC. Take a deep breath and think clearly about what you can do next. You now need to check if you can get your money back, report the scam, and protect yourself from further risks.
2. Contact your bank immediately. If you think that you may have been scammed, it might not be too late to stop it if you act fast. They will also help you to freeze any cards or bank accounts if they've been compromised. Speak to your bank straight away by calling the number on the back of your card or by calling 159, external and selecting your bank, for most major UK banks.
3. Gather all details of the scam, including who you have been in contact with (including names and any contact details they may have used), what information you have shared with them (including passwords or PINs), whether you've paid any money, and what method you used to do this.
4. Report it. There are various ways of doing this:
If the scammer is in your area, or you have paid money to them in the last 24 hours, you can contact your local police force on the 101 non-emergency number to report it as a crime. If you feel threatened or unsafe because of your scammer you should call 999.
If you're in England, Wales, or Northern Ireland, you should report fraud or cybercrime to Report Fraud. Contacting Report Fraud is of huge importance for enabling enforcement action. They work alongside police and the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau. You can contact Report Fraud online, external, or you can call them on 0300 123 2040. They will give you a crime reference number, which can be helpful if you need to tell your bank you've been scammed.
If you're in Scotland, you can contact Police Scotland by calling 101 to report a scam.
If the scam involves an investment, your pension, taking out a loan or credit, or insurance and warranty products, you can report it to the Financial Conduct Authority online, external, or by calling 0800 111 6768 (freephone).
You can forward a suspicious email to report@phishing.gov.uk, external, and the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) will investigate it.
Forward suspicious text messages to 7726. It's a free service, external, and will report the message to your phone provider.
For postal scams, Royal Mail will investigate. If you've received something in the post you think is a scam, you can download a scam mail report, external or call them and ask for a form and pre-paid envelope on 0800 011 3466.
You can report scam or misleading adverts found online, including on social media, to the Advertising Standards Authority, external.
If you receive a scam HMRC text, email, letter or phone call - you can make a report online, external. You can also email phishing@hmrc.gov.uk, external, or forward a text to 60599 - you'll be charged at your network rate. Check HMRC's guidance on recognising scams, external if you're not sure.
5. Speak to someone - perhaps a friend or family member who can support you. Don't be embarrassed to discuss it. Remember, scammers are very clever and anyone can get scammed. If you and those around you share information, it can really help prevent others becoming victims of fraud.
6. Change your passwords if you think they may have been compromised, or if you use the same password for several sites. You can read advice on how to create a strong password by the NCSC, external. Some people like to add an extra layer of security by using two-factor authentication, external.
7. Monitor your credit report, particularly if you've been the victim of identity theft. This will help you to see if anyone tries to open accounts or take out credit in your name. Most of the main agencies will let you view your credit report and score for free, but you may need to sign up to a 30 day free trial, and cancel it before you are charged a subscription fee.
8. Finally, Stop Scams UK, external and UK Finance's Take Five to Stop Fraud campaign, external have lots of resources that you can browse, to learn more about scams and how to protect yourself in the future.