According to new research* from WEALTH at work it seems that scammers are using multiple methods to hoodwink people out of their money, as the research found that more than a third (34%) of those who had lost money to a scam in the last 12 months had done so to two or more types of scam. To help individuals avoid falling for a financial scam. WEALTH at work has identified these common financial scams that people lost money to in the last year:
- Purchase scam– 27% of those who lost money to a financial scam said it was through the sale of fake products or goods online.
- Investment scam – 19% said it was through scams that encourage investing in fake opportunities or pyramid schemes.
- Friends or family scam – 18% said it was through messages sent claiming to be someone they knew asking for money.
- Bank account scam– 18% said it was through fake claims that their account had been compromised.
- Tech support scam– 15% said it was through fake technical support services that were used to obtain personal details.
- Befriending/romance scam– 14% said it was through scams where someone becomes your friend, then asks for money.
- Pensions scam– 13% said it was through fake promises of guaranteed returns or early access to their pension.
- Tax refund scam– 10% said it was through fake promises of tax rebates.
- Lottery scam –9% said it was through fake claims that they’ve won a prize
Jonathan Watts-Lay, Director, WEALTH at work, comments; “Financial scamming is rife and it’s shocking that many people have lost money not just once, but multiple times to scams in the last year. People need to be on their guard as fraudsters use many convincing techniques to persuade their victims that they are genuine. Many of these scams look completely legitimate and are not easy to spot.”