HSBC UK warns customers of the tricks fraudsters will play this Black Friday
Troy von Scheibner says: “As a professional magician, my aim is to entertain using a specialist set of skills. However, these techniques can also be used by fraudsters to fool people.”
As part of HSBC UK’s campaign Troy took to the streets to show consumers how fraudsters are playing mind games on us, designed to gain our trust and pressure. Check out the video here
Black Friday (26 November) is the perfect time for consumers to grab a bargain, but the dangers of falling victim to a purchase scam grows year-on-year.
Purchase scams - where fraudsters trick shoppers into paying in advance for goods or services that are never received - are the most common form of APP scam affecting HSBC customers, with 6,218 cases reported so far this year 1. Purchase scams increased by 17% in August 2021 compared with August last year, although less scams are being reported in the last few months compared to the start of 2021. A total of £6.98 million was reported lost to purchase scams in 2020.
David Callington, Head of Fraud at HSBC UK, said: ”Fraudsters can put consumers under their spell and make them think they are giving out personal or financial information for a legitimate reason. If a deal looks too good to be true - that’s because it probably is. Use secure payment methods and only buy from sites you trust.
“At HSBC UK, we’re working hard to protect customers against fraud – but there are lots of ways you can help to protect yourself too. By being aware of the tricks fraudsters use you can help keep your money safe.”
How to spot fraudsters’ tricks
- Someone contacts you out of the blue, by call, text or email
- They claim to be from a trusted organisation, like your bank, utility provider or police
- They can sound genuine, as they may already have gathered information about you online
- They often put you under pressure to do something without you having time to think it through properly.
- Calls, texts and emails may appear genuine but their actions and requests are not
Last month HSBC UK warned customers never to disclose their One Time Passcode (the code their prompted to input to authorise a transaction when shopping online) as they reported scams involving suspected disclosed passcodes had risen by 25% in the last six months.
To learn more about how HSBC UK is helping to protect customers and their money, visit: https://www.hsbc.co.uk/help/security-centre/
Media enquiries to:
Hannah Langston, HSBC UK Press Office | hannah.langston@hsbc.com | 07384 792 248
For the latest news and updates, visit the HSBC UK newsroom:
https://www.about.hsbc.co.uk/news-and-media
Notes to Editors
1HSBC UK customer data: 1 January to 31 August 2021
HSBC UK
HSBC UK serves around 15 million customers across the UK, supported by 26,000 colleagues. HSBC UK offers a complete range of retail banking and wealth management to personal and private banking customers, as well as commercial banking for small to medium businesses and large corporates.
HSBC Holdings plc
HSBC Holdings plc, the parent company of HSBC, is headquartered in London. HSBC serves customers worldwide from offices in 64 countries and territories in its geographical regions: Europe, Asia, North America, Latin America, and Middle East and North Africa. With assets of US$2,976bn at 30 June 2021, HSBC is one of the world’s largest banking and financial services organisations.