NatWest scam prevention In this feature l rogue traders l consumer protection l countering fraud Six steps to scam busting NatWests Kim Chambers highlights some of the cons that people fall prey to and offers advice on how consumers can keep themselves safe and secure from scammers I In some extreme cases, people know they are part of a scam, but the continuation of the illusion is preferable to reality f an elderly friend or family member received an email notifying them of a huge win on the Australian lottery, what would your first reaction be? Congratulations or scepticism? If your parents mentioned that a builder had knocked on their door offering to fix their leaky roof, would you warn them to think twice? And if someone said a clairvoyant had told them they were in for a financial windfall, depending on regular payments of 25 to find out exactly how it will arrive, would you encourage them to pay or halt the conversation right there? Id be surprised if anyone reading this would consider these examples to be anything other than scams. Criminals spend their days trying to con members of the public out of their cash in every way possible and, unfortunately, many of their audacious schemes are successful. As a community protection adviser for NatWest in the Midlands and the east of England, I spend my time with colleagues and customers trying to stop these scams and frauds before any money is handed over. In the past year, we have prevented more than 70m of customers cash from ending up in the hands of criminals. Its an interesting and occasionally frustrating role because of the increasing sophistication of the scammers. I have to explain to people of all ages, backgrounds and financial situations that what they are hearing isnt the truth. The conversations can be difficult. Imagine realising that the love of your life, whom you met online, isnt a soldier in Afghanistan, that they arent going to move in with you on their return with an engagement ring, and the money you sent for their medical fees will never be returned, and hadnt been used for any type of injury. Some people are embarrassed to have fallen for scams that, with hindsight, are obviously false, but that, in the moment, sound too good to dismiss. Before they know it, they have been drawn into the illusion. In some extreme cases, people know they are part of a scam, but the continuation of the illusion is preferable to reality. Of course, scammers are very real. Recently, we have seen a spate of people falling victim to cowboy builders. We usually see a spike in this kind of fraud after winter, as people start to think about sprucing up their homes. These fraudsters will call at your door and offer to do work, often at a knockdown price. They might suggest repairs that you didnt realise you needed and offer you a significant discount if you agree to pay them cash. Recently, we had a customer come into a branch of the bank asking to withdraw a large amount of cash. We train our branch staff to look out for unusual behaviour, so the customer was asked a couple of questions about what the money was for. This might feel intrusive to the customer, but our branch staff are the frontline defence against scammers. After a quick chat, our member of staff realised there was something suspicious about the request. It turned out a workman had knocked on the customers door and shown her some tiles that he claimed had fallen off her roof. He told her she needed a lot of work doing to make her roof safe, that he could do it, and that it would cost 7,000. The builder insisted the woman pay him in cash upfront; he was so insistent that he sat outside the bank, in the customers car, waiting for her to return with the money. Our member of staff explained her concerns to the customer and asked her permission to call the police. The builder was arrested in the banks car park. So why am I telling you all this? Simply to help you stop it happening. Fraudsters will go to outrageous lengths to convince consumers they are legitimate, but of course you know they are not. As a bank, we do everything in our power to keep our customers safe and secure. By encouraging consumers to follow the advice below, you can do the same. Lets put a stop to these scammers once and for all. N AT WESTS S IX SCAMBUSTING TIPS There are ways consumers can protect themselves from fraudsters. Six tips we recommend you promote are: can use what you post to impersonate independently sourced number even if full PIN or password in a text or email, or you. Always shred documents you receive a message from your bank when banking online containing any personal information that contains a telephone number G Your bank will never ask you for your G Your bank or the police will never ask you to pay money out of your account G Be careful what personal information you share on social media fraudsters Credits Kim Chambers is a community protection adviser for NatWest. Images: Photosani / Shutterstock G Always protect your computer, mobile G Never give money to, or agree to have and other devices with up-to-date work done by, a trader without checking security software their legitimacy speak to a friend, G Always phone your bank on an To share this page, in the toolbar click on family member or trading standards first You might also like Breaking Bad, page 36 of the November 2015 edition of TS Review.