Beware of ‘Credit Investigation Department’ Scam

On 29 January 2020, Rev Ross Rennie received a telephone call from a mobile phone. The caller claimed to be calling on behalf of the ‘Credit Investigation Department’. When this person started asking about debts, Rev Ross terminated the call.

On checking with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), we find that ‘this firm has been carrying out consumer credit activities in the UK without [the FCA’s] permission or authorisation.’ Find out more at the FCA’s web site.

Please beware of any approaches from this or similar firms and do not disclose your personal information to people or companies that you do not have an existing relationship with.

Beware Scammers!

I received a telephone call today from someone purporting to be from a company offering to make a claim for compensation for mis-selling by my bank. He knew my address and my bank sort code and asked me for my bank account number. He claimed that the company was authorised by the OFT.

Beware! This is an attempt to obtain your bank account details and/or persuade you to part with money up front for a service that will never be provided.

Update: Another Scam!

Hand reaching out from computer screen to steal elderly lady's cash

Today I received another telephone call, this time from someone masquerading as Microsoft Technical Support, who attempted to mislead me into installing some malware on my computer.

Read more about this scam here.

If your computer uses Microsoft Windows, I recommend running Malwarebytes frequently to keep it free from malware.

And Another!

I have not suffered this particular attack, but it is quite prevalent.

A fraudster rings you, claiming to be from your bank, saying their systems have spotted a fraudulent payment on your card or that your card is due to expire and needs replacing.

You may be asked to ring back using the phone number on the back of your card – which further convinces you the call is genuine. However, the criminal keeps the line open at their end so, when you make the call, you are unknowingly connected straight back to the fraudster.

Read more about this scam here.

[Image by Don Hankins, Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic Licence]