Residents warned after £500k stolen by Whatsapp fraudster

Residents warned after £500k stolen by Whatsapp fraudster

A fraudster posing as an investigator from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has stolen £500,000 from the bank account of a Watford resident.

On Friday 29 May the victim, who is aged in their 70s, was contacted by the fraudster via an official looking Whatsapp account, claiming to be investigating fraud on their Yorkshire Building Society account on behalf of the FCA. The fraudster spent several days gaining the victim’s trust, before convincing them to hand over their details, including online banking passwords.

The offender subsequently withdrew around £500,000 from the account and further suspicious transactions were blocked on other accounts held by the victim.

Fraud Triage Manager Julian Griffiths, from the Serious Fraud and Cyber Unit, said: “It’s unusual for fraudsters to contact victims via Whatsapp, but in this instance they managed to convince the victim they were genuine, using an FCA logo on their profile picture.

“The fraudster had so convinced the victim, that the fraud was not reported and only came to light when the victim was overheard having a troubling phone conversation with the fraudster. The victim is now being helped by our victim support team.”

If you receive a message or call you are not expecting, you should be suspicious. The vital things to remember are that someone working for your bank, the FCA or the police would:

NEVER ask for your bank account details or PIN, so do not disclose these to anyone, no matter who they claim to be.

NEVER ask you to withdraw money or purchase high value items and send it to them via a courier, taxi or by any other means.

NEVER ask you to send your bank cards, or any other personal property, to them via courier, taxi or by any other means.

If you are not happy with a phone call or message and are suspicious of a conversation, end it and call 101 or report online herts.police.uk/report. In an emergency or if a crime is in progress call 999 immediately.

Remember, when reporting a suspicious phone call to police, wait at least five minutes before attempting to make the call to ensure you’re not reconnected to the offender.

Alternatively, use a mobile phone or a neighbour’s phone or test your landline by phoning a friend or relative first, to ensure you aren’t still unwittingly connected to the offender.

If you have concerns about your bank account, visit your local branch.

How to protect yourself:

Remember to follow the above advice. In addition to this, some phone companies offer call screening services that can be effective in blocking marketing cold calls and bogus callers. Contact your phone company and ask about call screening and caller display services.

How can you help?

Please share this information with your older relatives and friends: this crime has a devastating effect on people and we need to raise awareness to prevent further people becoming victims.

Report any calls you believe are suspicious as we may be able to trace where the calls are originating from. Please remember, to wait at least five minutes before calling police or use a mobile or neighbour’s phone.

Report suspicious activity at cash points. If you see someone spending a long time at a cashpoint, using a number of different cards and have a hood up or their faces covered, contact police immediately. Often offenders will use cashpoints in the early hours.

For more advice and information about fraud visit: www.herts.police.uk/cyber-fraud.

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Message Sent By
Daniel Huntley
(Hertfordshire Constabulary, Supervisor PCSO, St Albans - London Colney, St Stephens & St Albans East)