Almost 5,000 fake FCA scams reported – How to avoid becoming a victim

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has issued a warning after receiving a total of 4,465 reports of fake FCA scams to its consumer helpline so far this year. Of those, 480 victims were scammed into sending money to fraudsters who were claiming to be from the FCA. The regulator has urged consumers to take precautions if they receive communications that claim to be from the FCA and in this article, we explain below what you can do to avoid becoming a victim.

What do the fake FCA scams look like?

Scammers use various methods to dupe their victims, ranging from email, texts, and phone calls to dating apps and other social media platforms. The regulator has highlighted some common scenarios that have occurred where the scammer claims to be a representative of the FCA:

• Crypto wallet scam - where the scammer will pose as the FCA and assert that someone has falsely opened a crypto wallet in your name and that the money recovered needs to be sent to you, therefore requiring your bank account or other personal information.
• Targeting of loan scam victims - this is where the scammer has acquired information about victims of loan scams and targets them, posing as the FCA. This can lead to them believing that they are helping the FCA recover money they have already lost. Sometimes the scammer will ask for additional funds to facilitate this, thus adding to their losses.
• CCJ scam - where the scammer claims to be the FCA and requests money for bills arising from a county court judgement taken out against you by your creditors.
• 'Pig butchering' - this is where the scammer builds a connection to the victim, which could be romantic, defrauds them of money, and then impersonates the FCA to approach the victim claiming to need money to pay for the recovery of their lost funds.

There are other versions of scams that mean that a victim is approached by fraudsters claiming to be a representative from the FCA, so treat any suspicious communications with caution.

What to do if you think you are being scammed

Whichever method of communication you receive, you should note that the FCA will not ask you for personal information like your bank account PINs and passwords. If you are asked for this type of information, take a moment to reflect and if needed, agree to contact the FCA separately. You can use the FCA's online contact form to do so.

You can find more information about scams and how to avoid becoming a victim of fraud in our article, "Scams advice – how to avoid falling victim".