SCAM REPORTING
A few people have sent me examples of financial COVID scams. This can be a particular issue for elderly people while they are isolating.
Keep me informed so I can raise awareness locally as our police do a lot on fraud work but there is also now a government reporting service that will be considered by a team who are part of GCHQ.
The details are below.
You’ll never get an email, text message or phone call from HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) which:
- tells you about a tax rebate or penalty
- asks for your personal or payment information
Check HMRC’s guidance on recognising scams if you’re not sure.
Reporting suspicious emails, texts or phone calls
you can report something suspicious to HMRC’s phishing team, for example:
- a text message (forward it to 60599 - you’ll be charged at your network rate)
- an email
- details of a phone call asking for personal information or threatening a lawsuit
If you receive a suspicious phone call, you can help HMRC’s investigations by providing:
* your phone number
* the caller’s phone number
* the time and date of the call
* a brief description of the call
HMRC phishing team: phishing@hmrc.gov.uk
These are nasty faceless crimes that often leave victims feeling confused & ashamed & abused in their own homes without ever opening the door. The more emails, texts and phone call scams we report, the more can be highlighted to vulnerable groups & scams shut down to prevent harming people.