There are a number of scams designed to cheat you out of your money. One of these involves unsolicited phone calls to your landline, or mobile phone where you are duped into giving your bank account details or other financial information that can be used for identity theft. While there is help available after a crime has been committed it can be useful to know how to avoid falling victim to financial fraud from telephone scams in the first place.
Telephone scams are not always easy to spot but there are ways that you can better protect yourself and ensure that you are not a victim. Here are some ways that can help you learn how to avoid falling victim to financial fraud from telephone scams:
Know who you’re talking to:
Find out who it is that you are dealing with when you get a phone call asking you for private and sensitive information. They may pretend to be calling from legitimate organizations so ask for a name and tell them that you will ring the company back yourself. This way you can get the authentic number of any company you are a customer of without risking being a victim of financial fraud.
Anonymous telephone calls:
You may be contacted out of the blue with someone claiming that you are a winner of a lottery or other prize and you need to give your financial details so that you can receive the prize. If you have never entered any competition then how could you be the winner? This is one of the most common excuses scammers use to try and gain your financial details so they can steal money from you.
Pressure:
When you refuse to hand over your financial details you may notice that the person’s tone changes. They may use pressure to persuade you to hand over your details. For instance some may threaten you by claiming the police is going to arrest you if you do not comply with their terms. Take your time to think about what you are going to do and don’t be scared of their threats against you.
Card details:
Do not give your bank account details or money to someone you don’t know just because they claim they are from a well known organization. There have been many instances where scammers claim they are part of well known organizations so that they can gain the trust of their victims. Ask the person what alternative ways there are to pay if you are not sure whether they are really who they say they are.
Legitimacy:
Some scammers go so far in their scam that it may astonish you. There are cases where they will build professional looking websites that are often carbon copies of many legitimate businesses. These are designed to help convince you of their legitimacy so do not be persuaded by a flashy website. Check your local government websites for the company to see whether it is legitimate or not.
Too good to be true:
To tempt you to give over your details you may be offered something in return. In order for you to get your prize you may need to pay for postage and packaging. They sometimes may also make exaggerated promises too. By following the advice ‘if it sounds too good to be true then it probably is’ you could protect yourself and avoid falling victim to financial fraud from telephone scams.
Scammers will try and use any means to gain your financial information. They will then use it to steal money from your account or to commit identity theft. The tips above will help you learn how to avoid falling victim to financial fraud from telephone scams so that you can better protect yourself.