This week marks the start of National Scams Awareness Fortnight, a campaign set up by Citizens Advice to alert consumers what to do if they see or experience a scam.
The increase in online shopping and banking over the last decade has led to scams and cyber fraud hitting the headlines over the last few years. According to data released by Shieldpay, one in four (23%) British consumers have been the victim of fraud when shopping online and the cost of online scams for those targeted while purchasing an item online was an average of £608 – with one in seven (14%) victims defrauded by more than £1,000.
The good news for consumers is that last month eight major high street banks and building societies signed up to a voluntary agreement to refund the victims of fraud, especially for scams known as push payment cons. While this offers consumers an opportunity to have their money refunded in the event of a scam, it is still vital that consumers aim to protect themselves against being defrauded as the surest way of safeguarding their money from criminals.
An important way that consumers can protect themselves from fraud is to recognise an activity that could indicate a scam. As part of its campaign against scams, Citizens Advice has provided the following advice that something may be a scam if:
Information is correct as of the date of publication (shown at the top of this article). Any products featured may be withdrawn by their provider or changed at any time.
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