Jenny, a victim of fraud, has spoken to the BBC about her experience and how she used a fraud helpline to try to avoid scammers. Unfortunately, they still managed to steal £4,000 by sending a fake courier to collect the money from her doorstep. Scammers face increased pressure from the 159 fraud helpline which has received 800,000 calls in just three years. Stop Scams UK created the helpline as a safe and secure way for victims to contact their banks.
Scammers can be extremely convincing. The fraudsters who targeted Jenny knew her name, phone number and address and pretended to be from her bank. They convinced her there was suspicious activity on her account and eventually put her through to someone pretending to be from the police. This person asked for her help to investigate fraud at her local bank branch and eventually intimidated and threatened her. Jenny was told not to tell anyone or she could be prosecuted. Devastatingly, the scammers managed to steal £4,000 from her in cash.
When Jenny realised what had happened, she called her bank and Action Fraud. They advised her to call the 159 helpline if the scammers tried to steal more money. Luckily when they contacted her again, she dialled 159 and prevented them from taking more money. Impersonating someone’s bank is a key tactic in many frauds. Dialling 159 connects victims of fraud directly with their bank.
The 159 helpline is not perfect, but it has been helpful for many victims of fraud. It is not a freephone number and how long it takes to connect callers to specialist fraud advisors can vary, but with 20 banks now involved, covering 99% of UK current account holders, it is a useful tool in the fight against fraud. The Co-operative Bank signed up to the 159 helpline three years ago as it provides a quick and easy way for customers to report suspicious activity. In one case, the bank was able to stop a fraud in real-time after a small business customer phoned the 159 line to report unusual transactions on their account
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