SMARTPHONES TOP LIST OF CHRISTMAS ONLINE SCAMS, WITH CONSOLES SECOND

Barbour jackets, Ugg boots and Xbox One games consoles are among the riskiest items when it comes to online scams targeting Christmas shoppers, according to Police figures. With “Cyber Monday” on 1 December likely to be yet another record-breaking day for online Christmas shopping, cybercrime experts are urging people to stay vigilant and watch out for “too good to be true” bargains.

In 2013, reports of online shopping fraud during the Christmas period jumped 31%, leaving UK shoppers out of pocket by £9.5m, with individuals on average losing £113 each. But with recent research suggesting less than a third of people will actually report an online crime to Police, the true amount lost could be more than £28m. A list of the top five most risky items for Christmas shoppers has been issued by Get Safe Online, which is a joint partnership between the government, the National Crime Agency, Ofcom and several companies, in conjunction with Barclays and security software company Kaspersky. Smartphones top the list specifically iPhones and Samsung Galaxys, followed by games consoles, in particular the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. Ugg boots and Barbour jackets are in third and fourth place, with iPads (including the iPad mini) taking the fifth spot. Online shopping scams can take a range of forms.

In some cases, buyers are sent fake goods or receive nothing at all. In others, purchasers are targeted by fraudsters who use their identity and other information to access their personal finances or buy goods or obtain finance from alternative sources. Tony Neate, chief executive of Get Safe Online, said: “We felt it was important to highlight the most risky items, not to deter consumers from enjoying the benefits of shopping online, but to educate them on what they can do to prevent being caught out by online scammers.”

HOW TO PROTECT YOURSELF WHILE SHOPPING

• Ensure your bank has your contact numbers so it can speak to you if it spots unusual or suspicious activity on your account.
• Make sure your computer and web-enabled phones are protected with up-to-date internet security software.
• When shopping online, always ensure that the URL starts “https” rather than “http,” or has the gold padlock icon, and use only official apps for mobile banking.
• Only ever access your internet banking or shopping sites by typing the address into your browser. Never go to a website from a link in an email and then enter personal details.
• Be cautious with online auctions. For higher value items such as cars, make sure you always see the item before sending any money, and always use the insured methods of payment for the internet site rather than direct payments to a seller.
• Log out after shopping and save the confirmation email as a record of your purchase, and make sure you have registered your cards with Verified by Visa or MasterCard SecureCode.

Culled from Guardian

ADVERTISING WATCHDOG BANS THREE 'COPYCATS' OF GOVERNMENT WEBSITES

The advertising watchdog has banned three "copycat" websites masquerading as government channels for health insurance cards, passports and birth certificates, leaving consumers thousands of pounds out of pocket. The websites; europeanhealthcard.org.uk, uk officialservices.co.uk and ukpassportoffices.co.uk duped users into thinking they were official providers of services they were offering, the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) said. It ruled that all three websites must not appear again in their current format. It also ordered that any future versions must include prominent disclaimers explaining that they were not official channels and with full details of any additional costs. The ASA said it received large numbers of consumer complaints about websites that offered access to online government services, but which were not official channels and typically charged a premium. It said that following research about the public's experience of "copycat" websites in July; it conducted in-depth investigations to decide how such sites should present their services to avoid misleading consumers. The ASA said the europeanhealthcard.org.uk website charged for an application verification service, while the EHIC was available for free when applied for via the official gov.uk website. The uk-officialservices.co.uk website enabled users to obtain birth, adoption, marriage, civil partnership and death certificates but was not the official site. It charged a premium, in addition to costs routinely charged by the official gov.uk website. The ASA said consumers were likely to infer that a website enabling them to obtain government-issued certificates was official. The ukpassportoffices.co.uk website charged for their application verification service, yet their fees did not include the fee charged by HM Passport Office, which consumers would still have to pay directly to the government.

The crackdown follows a campaign in the Guardian's Money section alerting readers to copycat websites and revealing the tangled network of traders behind them. A parallel investigation that examined 10 websites providing services for passport applications, EHIC cards and tax return services found them to be misleading or confusing, providing poor value for money and left some consumers up to £1,000 out of pocket.

Culled from Guardian

BARCLAY'S SCAM "VICTIM’S STORY"

When Guardian Money first highlighted the HomeAway scam in April 2013, the victim Diana Cinamon, who lost over £2,600, had paid the money into a Barclays account. After running our story on the most recent victims last month, we were contacted by several more victims. Geoff Cosson, who lives in Cyprus, told how his family had almost fallen for the scam but realised just in time. Having corresponded at some length with the fraudsters, his family had all the details including the Barclays account the money was to be paid into. “When we realised, we contacted Barclays, Action Fraud and Trading Standards. My experience with all three was pretty dismal. We had an address in Acton of a named person, a bank account number and a branch address, all of which I sent direct to Barclays. I got no response at all. Presumably, the conmen must have opened accounts, and shut them pretty quickly, all on a regular basis. Is there no method of flagging up this type of unusual account activity? Maybe, if Barclays was held liable, it would be a bit more proactive,” he says.

The campaign group says several victims have pursued the bank through the courts and have been reimbursed as a result, albeit without an admission of liability, and, in some cases, the victim has been made to sign a gagging order. Last year a group of Australian tourists decided to take out a class action against Barclays after paying thousands of dollars into accounts for bookings that didn’t exist. In the end, only two complainants pursued the bank. Each was refunded, according to legal firm Edwin Coe that represented the victims.

Culled from Guardian

“OWNERSDIRECT HOLIDAY” VICTIM LOST £2,790 AFTER PHISHER HACKS INTO EMAIL

Scammer intercepted owner's reply and we have lost all our money and OwnersDirect will refund only £700. We appear to have lost £2,790 after booking a holiday villa in France using the OwnersDirect web site. This was for our main holiday for my family. We found a house we liked, used the "contact the owner" page to inquire about availability, and were pleased when we got an email from the property owner, Robin Lee, saying the villa was free. He confirmed that, if we wished to book, we would need to complete a booking contract and return this to him. Once returned, he would provide the owner's bank account details (leading us to believe he was acting on behalf of the actual owner). There was a slight delay in returning the contract and, at one point; I tried to call the contact number to confirm whether he wished to be paid in sterling or euros. He did not answer, but I left a voicemail and received an email back. I made the transfer via my online bank, and sent proof of transfer. That evening we did not feel completely at ease with having transferred such a large amount of money so we telephoned again and, again, got an answerphone. We went back to the OwnersDirect web page, linked to the property owner's web site and located a further number in France. When we rang it quickly emerged that the real owner had no booking. He said he had emailed us to confirm that there was no availability. Our inquiry appeared to have been intercepted and we had been dealing with a scam artist. The real owner said he had been called by another family that day, too, who were also going to transfer money. We completed the "online security issue form" on the OwnersDirect web page (which said we would get a response in 12 hours). It did not respond, but copied us into a general email warning of possible problems with this property's web page. Our bank has told us the money has gone.      

OwnersDirect has been less than sympathetic, keeping us on hold for half an hour, and then clearly reading from a script. It seemed to imply that it was the owner's fault that their email account had been compromised. We feel £2,790 is an extremely large amount to lose. I am thankful we did not drive all the way to the South of France to find we had nowhere to stay! JL Warwick This will come as no consolation, but we first warned about this fraud a year or so ago when another reader lost a similar sum in similar circumstances although, in their case, they had used OwnersDirect's sister site HomeAway. As in that case, OwnersDirect this week maintained that your loss is nothing to do with the company and, as a result, it will not be helping you, over and above its standard terms. It says the fraud came about because the home owner's Yahoo account was hacked in other words; the scammer intercepted your initial request, and pretended to be him. The website does offer a basic guarantee against phishing fraud, but only up to a paltry £700. That still leaves you £2,000 out of pocket. It says the refund will take six to eight weeks to process. OwnersDirect says: "Our advice for travellers to protect themselves from a phisher is to call the owner directly on the number provided on the listings and not from one provided in any correspondence. The owner should always be available for a call, and by calling them the traveller limits the risk substantially." It also says that your experience is very rare. However, if it is as rare as it suggests, perhaps the company should increase the basic guarantee to a more meaningful sum. Many of the holiday rentals listed on its sites are for much more than £700. Which leaves the final question: what should others do when booking accommodation in this way? We would be very wary of sending £2,800 to an unknown person's bank account. The OwnersDirect site offers its own insurance against fraud, but it costs 2.3% of the booking fee. That would have added more than £60 to your booking a nice moneyspinner for those behind it, but of course, it would have been money well spent in your case. The best advice is to talk to the owner on the number on the original listing, and be wary when using this site to book villas, and of any emails sent by owners. If the rental sum is large, consider paying the insurance, or agreeing half up front with the rest in cash on arrival. Better still, avoid OwnersDirect and HomeAway until they do more to resolve this problem or offer a decent insurance to bookers for free.

We welcome letters but cannot answer individually. Email us at consumer.champions@theguardian.com or write to Consumer Champions, Money, The Guardian, 90 York Way, London N1 9GU. Please include a daytime phone number                                               Culled from Guardian 

IS OPENING AN ACCOUNT AT BARCLAYS A PASSPORT FOR INTERNATIONAL CROOKS?

Barclays is being used by international fraudsters to rip off victims both at home and abroad yet it takes no action, according to a campaign group. Barclays Bank has been accused by victims of fraud of loose security procedures which have enabled international crooks to open accounts with foreign passports and then use them to fleece individuals online. The bank vigorously rejects the claims, saying it takes account security very seriously, carries out in-depth verification checks and meets all ID requirements under money-laundering rules. But an action group set up following a multimillion pound fraud against holidaymakers who booked villas and homes through the Owners Direct/HomeAway website, allege that the bank is being used by crooks in nine out of 10 cases it has seen. The holiday villa fraud reported extensively in Guardian Money in recent weeks sees holidaymakers paying what they believe to be the villa owner for their rental by bank transfer. In fact, the owner’s email address has been taken over by fraudsters who need a bank account to accept the money.

The group claims:

• Fraudsters from around the world are heading to the UK to open Barclays current accounts using foreign passports as ID. Other banks, such as Lloyds and Halifax, operate a list of countries mostly EU and other developed countries whose passports they accept, but which excludes many east European, African and Asian countries.
• Web chats with Barclays staff, where the victims posed as potential account openers, reveal that the bank encourages applications with relatively little ID, such as a foreign driving licence.
• Chasing the crooks is made difficult as they may leave Britain as soon as they have obtained the account. Once opened, it can be operated from anywhere in the world.

Barclays points out that it requires account openers to show proof of residence in the UK, such as a recent gas, water or telephone bill. But the campaigners allege that these are relatively easy to forge. The allegations come amid growing concern over the scale of financial crime. Last month, it emerged that £4m bank frauds are currently being left out of the official UK crime figures. If bank and credit card fraud were included in the annual Crime Survey for England and Wales, the estimated number of offences would jump by 50% taking the total from £7.3m to £11m a year, according to the Office for National Statistics, and puncturing the widely reported story that crime has fallen.

The allegations against Barclays have been made by Vacation Rental Scam Victims, set up by villa owners in Bali, Indonesia. They were fed up with holidaymakers arriving at their properties believing they had rented the home, only to find that they had been scammed. The group says that of the 101 victims they are aware of, 93 paid money to fraudsters using Barclays accounts. Importantly, the victims are not necessarily British. Campaigners say that the villa owner might be Australian, and the holidaymaker from New Zealand, but the account they are told to pay money into is nearly always Barclays in the UK. Could it be that there is a Mr. Big behind this particular fraud, who just happens to have used Barclays? The victims point out that the fraud requires opening hundreds of Barclays accounts. Reports in Australia allege that fraudsters switched to Barclays after Lloyds tightened up account opening rules. The campaign group is not alone in contacting Guardian Money with these allegations. An Indian businessman in Mumbai alleges rules “were flouted” when a fraudster opened two Barclays accounts in Leicester in his company’s name. He says his email account was hijacked and customers in Germany, the US and Canada made payments into the accounts, even though he has no connection with the UK. The villa owners’ campaign group says it has warned Barclays over many years that it is being used by fraudsters, but that it has not had an adequate response. It is also critical of the UK police’s response, and says reporting crimes to Action Fraud has been “a waste of time”. The Barclays website confirms that a foreign passport or driving licence can be used as ID to open a bank account, even though the documents may not be in English. In a web chat that took place last month, a Barclays employee told a member of the campaign group that she could apply for a Cash Card account and it would take “15-20 minutes in branch”. Once opened, it could be used immediately. When she asked how her documents could possibly be verified by branch staff, as they are written in Indonesian, she was told: “We have interpreters in the branch who read foreign documents, so this will not be a problem.” Barclays says that it does not open accounts for foreign nationals who are based overseas, except for very wealthy clients. Its website states that it will accept a letter or bill from a utility company as proof of a UK address, as long as it is less than three months old. Stephen Howes, a victim of the Owners Direct scam, who lives in central London, says he was amazed when he looked into the matter after losing £2,000. He made a bank transfer into a Barclays account, thinking he was paying for a villa in Italy last May. When he learned that he, and most of the other victims, had also paid their money into Barclays accounts, he decided he would take the matter up with the authorities. He claims Barclays denied all liability.

Action Fraud, he says, took the details but has told him nothing since. He says he’s been told by another victim that the Financial Ombudsman will not rule on whether the banks have failed to protect consumers’ interests in such circumstances, as it is “not in its remit”. “It’s bizarre. Millions of pounds that have been stolen from victims all around the world have been paid into accounts of one UK bank, and yet no one wants to take any action, or has shown any interest in even taking a look at it. To me it seems incredible,” says Howes. His MP, Mark Field, took up his case, and told Money that he has “been in correspondence with the police, government and a particular bank, to try to get additional safeguards put in place”. A spokeswoman for the campaign group similarly describes how the group has failed to get the bank or the police to take up the matter even after posing as renters and catching the fraudsters in the act of defrauding their next victim. “We have been campaigning to get the UK authorities and Barclays in particular, to take this seriously. We have sent them details of accounts being used but no one wants to tackle the matter it’s all being swept under the carpet,” she says. A spokeswoman for the bank says: “Barclays takes any scam issues very seriously. We want to eliminate the use of accounts for scams and appreciate any information provided to us to assist with this.” She said the bank does not accept the allegation that all Barclays accounts used for fraudulent purposes are opened using counterfeit identification. “Sample tests have shown that the majority of Barclays accounts used in scams are opened with genuine ID. We have robust identity and verification processes, complying with all regulatory requirements.” She added that HM Treasury approved industry guidance stipulates that a government-issued document such as a valid passport or national identity card is an acceptable and independent means of verifying a customer’s identity, provided that it contains the full name and photograph, and confirms either the customer’s date of birth or address. “Both the passport and the second supporting document have to be in the name of the individual. The second document has to state the UK address given as being the current address, and has to be less than three months old, not printed from the internet, not a final or closing statement etc. “The overall application is also subject to fraud screening via internal and external databases.”

Culled from Guardian

NINE WOMEN MASTERMINDED £21M SCAM THAT FLEECED 10,000 VICTIMS

 Rita Lomas (left) and Jane Smith admitted in 2012 

to promoting the £21m get-rich-quick pyramid scheme, 

called Give and Take. Photograph: Ben Birchall/PA

Get-rich-quick pyramid scheme, called Give and Take or Key to a Fortune, caused a loss to the public of about £19m. Nine women have been found guilty of running a £21m get-rich-quick scheme, fleecing at least 10,000 victims after luring them in with "champagne celebration nights" and encouraging them to "beg, borrow or steal" the £3,000 needed to invest in the scam. The victims, often vulnerable women, were told they would receive a £24,000 payout when they reached the top of their pyramid chart, with organisers promising they could not lose. The scheme, called Give and Take (G&T), spread from Bath and Bristol to the West Country and Wales between May 2008 and April 2009. Committee members at the top of the scheme pocketed up to £92,000 each, while 88% of their victims lost between £3,000 and £15,000. G&T, also known as Key to a Fortune, was kept secret as members were forbidden from writing about it to protect the organisers. But it was uncovered when an employer in Bristol complained to UK trading standards that it was being promoted in his workplace. Eleven women, aged 34 to 69, became the first in the UK to be prosecuted under new legislation in the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Act 2008. Six of the women have been sentenced, while three will be sentenced at Bristol crown court next month. One woman was acquitted of promoting the scheme, while two juries failed to reach a verdict for another woman on the same charge. Judge Mark Horton, who banned reporting of the case until Thursday, said: "This scheme caused a loss to the public of around £19m. A number of women suffered enormous and in some cases lifelong financial hardship due to their involvement.

 "The public need to be aware that schemes like this lead to the destruction of lifelong friendships and families and in some cases whole communities." On Wednesday scheme coordinator Mary Nash, 65, committee secretary Susan Crane, 68, and games coordinator Hazel Cameron, 54, pleaded guilty to charges of operating and promoting the scheme. The women had been due to face a retrial, after a jury last year failed to reach verdicts in their cases. In 2012 Sally Phillips, 34, and Jane Smith, 50, both of Bristol, and Rita Lomas, 49, of Whitchurch, Somerset, admitted promoting the scheme. The three received suspended sentences: Phillips three months, Smith four months and Lomas four-and-a-half months. Following a five-month trial in 2012, chairman Laura Fox, 69, treasurer Jennifer Smith-Hayes, 69, and venue organiser Carol Chalmers, 68, were convicted of operating and promoting the scheme. Fox, of East Harptree, Somerset, Smith-Hayes of Bristol, and Chalmers, of Weston-super-Mare, were jailed for nine months. They have now served their sentences. The scheme operated on 15-space pyramids, each space filled with a participant who paid £3,000 and introduced two friends who paid the same amount. Once the chart was filled, the eight people on the bottom paid their £3,000 to the person at the top, called the "bride". Payouts were collected at champagne parties, where "brides" were asked a series of simple questions before being handed the £24,000 on a silver plate. Questions included "what is the name of the tower in Paris" and "what type of animal is a great dane", with the option to ask a friend if the "bride" did not know the answer. Then £1,000 was deducted from the payout, with £600 shared between charities and £400 used to pay committee costs. Around £19m of the £21m scheme was lost on the charts, while the remaining £2m was paid out to the "brides". Miles Bennett, who prosecuted both trials, told how parties took place at the Battleborough Grange Hotel in Burnham-on-Sea, owned by Chalmers. Mobile phone footage from one party showed Fox shouting: "We are gambling in our own homes and that's what makes it legal." Bennett described the evenings as a "commercial practice", with minutes from committee meetings showing how £240,000 in cash was paid out one evening. "This wasn't a kitchen hobby, this was a scheme that sucked in a lot of people and which worked on the promise of them receiving riches way beyond their initial investment." Bennett added: "It is clear that, blinded by the possibility of riches and quick bucks, people were quite prepared to ignore the bleeding obvious pitfalls of a pyramid scheme."                   Culled from Guardian

“THE PENSION CROOKS WHO WANT TO GET THEIR HANDS ON YOUR PENSION POT”

One in eight employees aged 50 or over has been the target of fraudsters promising to release their pension savings.  Workers in their 50s are being warned that they are the primary target for scamsters who are using dramatic changes in the pensions system to try to part them from their retirement pot. Changes from April 2015 mean that retirees can, for the first time, use the money as they wish instead of having to buy an annuity. The first 25% of this will be tax-free. They will be able to use the money to pay down debts, for example, invest outside the pension, or simply enjoy life – even blowing the lot on a sports car, according to the pensions minister.“ This is great news for pension savers,” says Gareth James, from DIY investor platform AJ Bell. “But a dangerous combination of excitement and confusion could see those unsure of the rules lose the lot.” Research from Fidelity last week showed that around one in eight people aged 50 and over have been approached by fraudsters, promising to release more than the 25% lump sum, or to gain access to pension savings earlier than the minimum age of 55. Many of the companies contact people via unsolicited phone calls or text messages, offering a “free review”. Others specifically target those on public bankruptcy lists, while some approach people via official-looking “financial advisers”.

 The majority of those approached are between 50 and 59 – just when many are starting to think about retirement. More than one in 10 of those approached by these so-called “pensions liberation firms” trusted the advice given to them, said Fidelity. This has partly been driven by a significant lack of understanding around the new pension rules – two thirds of the over-50s don’t understand them, it said. “Some understand the rules as equating to immediate access without any caveats and can become very frustrated when they view providers as ‘holding on’ to their money unfairly,” said Alan Higham, retirement director at Fidelity Worldwide Investment. “Fraudulent organisations have capitalised on this, encouraging consumers to hand over their savings without fully understanding the tax penalties.” HMRC will hit those who cash in their retirement fund before the age of 55 with a charge of at least 55% of the sum released (or 70% if they fail to report it). And with the changes to pensions rules coming in next year, fresh scams are expected to surface encouraging the over-55s to take large chunks out of their pension to pile into dodgy investments offering staggering returns, paying lots of tax in the process. “Whatever the law is, fraudsters will seek to exploit it – so we expect the scams to continue to evolve under the new regime,” says a spokesman for the pensions regulator. Phil Ireland, 64, who is self-employed and runs a print finishing business, thinks the new freedoms are a “great idea”. He has been offered a “free review” several times through unsolicited emails and texts. “I haven’t taken these up yet, thankfully – and now I realise they’re a scam. I know there are several official services I can go to for guidance.” He adds: “Having said that, the change is very welcome, as it’s good to have choice and I need to work out what to do with my money. It’s really hard to know. I’ve done some research, and calculated the return from an annuity on £100,000 – I was bitterly disappointed.” He has a self-invested personal pension (Sipp) and a pension from previous employment. “My mortgage will still need to be paid off, but I’ve got an endowment for that,” he says. “I want professional advice on what to do with the pensions, but trying to work out which adviser is kosher is hard.” If you are in any doubt about the credentials of an adviser, you can look them up on the Financial Services Register and check they are qualified to advise on all aspects of pension planning. You can also check that any company you are dealing with is registered with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). “This means that the investment firm has been stamped by the industry ‘kite mark’ and will ensure that you always have a full recourse to the compensation scheme if something goes wrong,” says Chris Williams from online advisory service Wealth Horizon. You should expect to pay at least a few hundred pounds for professional advice. The Pension Income Choice Association has a comprehensive list of IFAs who are retirement specialists and can give you information on alternatives to annuities, such as drawdown.

Investment firms, such as Fidelity, have launched specific retirement services enabling investors to do it themselves, or buy advice in the areas they may need it. Independent bodies such as the Money Advice Service and the Pensions Advisory Service are there to answer general questions, but it’s expected they will be flooded with inquiries ahead of the rule changes. They won’t provide advice – simply guidance. Even those who do intend to make use of the new rules should exercise caution, stress advisers. While the first 25% of pension cash may be tax free, any remainder will be taxed at your personal rate – which may be 40%. Pensioners are free to draw down the money as they feel fit, but will want to withdraw at a rate that keeps them inside the 20% tax band. “Drawing out all your pension and paying the top rate of tax during the first year isn’t a good idea if you can stage it over a few years,” says pensions adviser Yvonne Goodwin. For most, a blend of options at retirement will likely be the best approach. This could include keeping some money in cash, leaving the rest invested in a mix of bonds, equities, and property, wrapping as much as possible in a tax-free Isa. You could, for example, buy an annuity to cover essential outgoings, and invest the rest. “An annuity will still be a suitable choice for many people, especially for those who want the certainty of a sustainable lifetime income and aren’t prepared to take additional risks,” says Patrick Connolly from independent financial adviser Chase de Vere.

NEED TO KNOW   

You are free to take your pension savings in cash when you reach age 55 (or 57 from 2028). You are not allowed to access your pension before this age. If you do, you risk at least a 55% tax charge.

1. The first 25% of pension cash is tax free. The rest will be taxed at the individual’s marginal rate – so many people could face a 40% charge.
2. You do not have to buy an annuity, but can use your money however you like.
3. If you have already bought an annuity or gone into drawdown in retirement, you cannot take advantage of the new rules.
4.  If you are in a final salary scheme that promises a regular income at retirement, you will probably want to stay put. However, you will be able to switch into a defined contribution (DC) scheme if you wish and withdraw your fund.
5.  Schemes for public sector workers, including doctors, nurses and firefighters, come with different rules. They will not be able to access the cash in these “unfunded” schemes. However, if it’s “funded” - such as local authority workers and the universities scheme – it can be transferred into a DC scheme and the money made accessible.

Culled from Observer 

BEWARE OF “COURIER FRUAD”

Police are warning of 'courier fraud', where victims dial their bank's number and speak to 'staff' who persuade them to part with huge sums of money. One reason people fall for this con is that, after being contacted by a fraudster purporting to be from their bank, the victim is told to phone back using the number printed on the back of their debit or credit card. This convinces many people that the call is genuine. However, the crook keeps the line open so the victim unknowingly talks to another member of the gang, posing as a bank employee.

Be aware that variations of the crime include:

1.   Asking the victim to assist in a police investigation. The victim is requested to withdraw a large sum of cash and take it home, where it is then collected by a courier;

2.   Being told there is a corrupt member of staff within the bank and asking for help in identifying them. The victim is told to withdraw a large sum which will be "marked" and then collected.

The police say that neither they nor the banks will ever call you to ask for your pin or bank card, or request that you transfer money to another account or assist them in catching fraudsters. If you are contacted by someone who asks for these, hang up. If you get a call from your bank, use a different line or mobile to call the number on your bank card or allow at least five minutes for the line to clear automatically before ringing the bank. If you suspect you have been targeted by courier fraudsters, report the call the police and contact your bank.

FACT FINDINGS

A total of 2,556 "courier fraud" offences were reported to the Metropolitan police between April 2013 and March 2014. The average loss suffered was around £2,600.

The hardest hit London boroughs include Barnet (115 offences since the start of 2014), Ealing (83), Kensington and Chelsea (50), Bromley (47) and Croydon (47).

Greater Manchester police has recorded 346 offences between February and the start of this month, while Essex police says more than 115 people in the county have been stung since January 2013.

According to the City of London police, the average age of victims is 54 and nearly two-thirds are female.

Culled from Guardian

'PETER PAN VIRUS' PHISHING EMAIL SENT TO THOUSANDS

Email purports to be from real company BH Live and tells recipient they have tickets for Peter Pan at Bournemouth Pavilion. A warning has been issued about what has already become known as the "Peter Pan virus" after thousands of people received a scam email claiming they had booked tickets to see a pantomime in Bournemouth this Christmas.

Hundreds of thousands of people across the UK and further afield are thought to have received the message, described as one of the most convincing examples yet of a phishing email designed to install malicious software known as malware on to the recipient's computer.

Phishing emails typically purport to come from organizations such as banks or HM Revenue & Customs, but this one is different: claiming to be sent from ticketing company BH Live, it states that the recipient has booked nine tickets to the 7pm performance of Peter Pan at Bournemouth Pavilion on 23 December.

The email typically states that a MasterCard whose last four digits are 7006 was used to make the £145 purchase. It invites people to open some e-tickets which it says are attached. BH Live is a real company; it is leisure, events and ticketing organization whose venues include Bournemouth Pavilion, which is indeed hosting a production of Peter Pan this Christmas. However, the company, which has been deluged with phone calls from worried recipients, said the emails did not come from BH Live or its network, and urged those who had received them not to open any attachments or click on any links. According to Derek Knight at the My Online Security blog, those who open the attachment may find they have downloaded viruses and malware such as Cryptolocker. Cryptolocker typically locks the recipient out of their computer until they pay a ransom to the scammers. "Almost all of these have a password-stealing component. Many of them are also designed to specifically steal your Facebook and other social network login details."

Culled from Guardian

BEWARE! THE PENSIONS CROOKS WHO WANT TO LIBERATE YOUR SAVINGS

Scrapping annuity rules in 2015 threatens a crime bonanza, conning the unwary into parting with their pensions. It is the answer to the financial worries plaguing you and your family. Access the cash locked up in your pension, pay down your debts, and leave some invested for your future. It even comes with a government endorsement, after the chancellor scrapped the annuity rules and the pension’s minister said you could blow all the cash on a Lamborghini if you wish. But anyone aged below 55 told they can “unlock” or “liberate” their pension, is being sold a lie.

The new freedoms that begin in April 2015 are for the over-55s only. Those younger than that, who take money out, will be subject to an “unauthorised withdrawal” charge by HMRC of at least 55%, rising to a maximum of 70%. Despite this, scamsters are hoping that April 2015 will open up a fraud bonanza as they use talk of “pension freedom” to con the unwary. Already victims have lost as much as £500m, with some estimates going as high as £1bn, and many are yet to realise their retirement fund has evaporated.

It usually starts with a call out of the blue, or a text message, or an email. It will offer you a “free review” of your pension and how you can obtain a “loan”, “saving advance” or “cashback”. If you agree, your pension fund will be transferred from your legitimate scheme into one set up by the company promising you early access to your money usually abroad. They will “loan” you part of your money (a small amount at first, to convince you they are real), then take a 30% fee for their services. They usually do not tell you about the enormous tax charge you face, but talk, instead, about the “amazing investment opportunities” you now have with what remains of your pension. The “amazing investment opportunities” are likely to be phoney carbon credits, rare earth minerals, penny shares and overseas property projects. Sometimes, the crooks are more upfront, and simply steal outright.

“The new pensions freedom has given a massive turbo-boost to fraudsters,” says Alan Higham, retirement director at Fidelity Worldwide Investments. “With eight months to go before it arrives, I already receive five calls or texts a week from dodgy firms offering a ‘free pensions review as promised by the government’.

“These are often from set-ups with names confusingly similar to those of regulators and regulated organisations.” John Fox, managing director of a pension provider, Liberty SIPP, had one customer who wanted to move £100,000 his entire pension into the shares of a Guernsey Stock Exchange regulated company. “It was on a recognised stock exchange but it seemed odd to us. We found that the shares at 4p had not been traded for 10 years. We told him he could not do this. He protested and the fraudsters sent us heavy legal letters but we stuck to our decision.” Fears are also growing that the over-55s, who can access their pensions subject to their marginal tax rate, will also be suckered into exotic investment schemes. Steve Hyndman, head of financial crime prevention at insurers Phoenix Group, believes he will be busier than ever. He says: “Taking money from the over-55s who will be able, legitimately, to do what they like with their pensions pot, will be far easier than current liberation frauds.

“Scam merchants will not have to go to the bother of trying to register phoney schemes to get past HMRC and people like me. “There are schemes already in force undertaking aggressive marketing to persuade consumers to cash in their pension. Phoenix has, so far, prevented more than £11m of potential liberation fraud, and expects to see more.” Clouding the issue is the fact that there are sometimes legitimate reasons why an individual might need to gain access to their pension money before the age of 55, for example if they have been diagnosed with a terminal illness. Margaret Snowdon, of JLT Benefits Consultants, is chair of the Pension Liberation Industry Group, currently finalising a “code of good practice” to offer clarity to trustees, scheme administrators and scheme providers. “We need a consistency of approach, to find a way to limit scams and protect legitimate trustees who have to make judgment calls on transfers. Trustees are in a bind. If they do not block fraudulent transfers, they are in personal jeopardy, but if they don’t allow good transfers, they can get in trouble as well.”

Culled from Guardian

SCAMMED SON DRIVEN TO SUICIDE

A distraught mother has spoken out after her son committed suicide as a result of a pensions liberation scam. Requesting total anonymity, she has told how her son, aged 40 when he died, had dreamt of a new life in southern Europe. He had been deluged with cold calls offering to unlock his pension pot worth £42,000 to fund his move. But when he finally acquiesced, he found the deal would only give him £17,000 while the £25,000 balance would go in “fees and legal expenses”.

However, he did not even get the £17,000 which was “invested” in a fraudulent scheme set up by the pension liberators. “He never received a penny of the cash,” said the victim’s mother, who was speaking as part of a combined anti pension fraud campaign combining the police, HM Revenue & Customs and The Pensions Regulator. She added: “The people behind this are crooks with no feelings; they are just after other people’s money. If anyone is tempted to take their offer, do not do it.”

In another development, Anna Riley (not her real name), 49, had just six years to wait before she could have legally accessed her £34,000 pension pot. But she wanted the money as soon as possible. She found a Pensions Liberator online and arranged the deal. Her £34,000 disappeared in charges and “investments”. But because she took her pension earlier than she should, HMRC can levy a special 55% tax charge on the proceeds, even though she has lost her funds. That equates to an £18,000 tax bill, money which she does not have. She may now be forced into selling her home. She admits: “I was stupid. I listened to what they had to say and just thought about what I could do with the money. “Now I wish I had checked it out with an independent financial advisor. I could lose everything and in the end, I got nothing.”

WHAT IS-AND IS NOT- ALLOWED

Most people will be free to take out their entire pension savings in cash once they reach 55 (or 57 from 2028), even if they remain in employment. Anyone under 55 attempting to access their pension faces a 55% tax charge (or 70% if they fail to report it to HMRC).

The first 25% of pension cash is tax-free. The rest will be taxed at the individual’s marginal rate; so many people could face a 40% charge. There will be no obligation to buy an annuity. Pensioners are free to draw down the money as they feel fit, but will want to withdraw at a rate that keeps them inside the 20% tax band.

If you are in a final-salary-style scheme that promises a regular income at retirement, you will almost certainly want to stick with it. But you will be free to switch it to a “defined contribution” scheme and then cash it in (subject to your marginal rate of tax).

There are different rules for public sector workers. Anyone in an “unfunded” scheme, such as nurses, doctors and firefighters, will not be able to access the cash (the government worries it might run out of money). But if the scheme is “funded” – such as local authority workers and the universities scheme – it can be transferred into a DC scheme and the money made accessible.

Bad luck if you retired recently and bought an annuity or specialist drawdown scheme. You will not be permitted to unravel it.

In US, the National Suicide Prevention Hotline is 1-800-273-8255. In UK, the Samaritans can be contacted on 08457 90 90 90. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is on 13 11 14. Hotlines in other countries can be found here. 

Culled From Guardian.