More than three-quarters of adults (77%) in the UK said they have been approached by scammers in 2022 alone, research by national charity Citizens Advice found.
This marks a 14% increase from 2021 figures and comes at a time when the UK faces one of the worst cost of living crises in decades.
Citizens Advice said that using population estimates, scammers have targeted 41 million British adults already in 2022.
The survey found that the most common scams used to target savers were:
- Deliveries, postal or courier services (55%);
- Impersonating HM Revenue & Customs or the government (41%);
- Fake investment or financial ‘get rich quick’ schemes (29%);
- Rebates and refunds (28%);
- Banking (27%);
- Online shopping (24%);
- Heath or medical (13%), and
- Energy scams (13%).
Dame Clare Moriarty, chief executive of Citizens Advice, said: “We know scammers prey on our worries and fears and the cost-of-living crisis is no exception.
“Anyone can be targeted by a scam, and as the purse strings are tightened and financial pressures pile on, it’s more important than ever we recognise the red flags. By reporting scams and sharing our own experiences, we can work together to protect ourselves and each other.”
Consumer minister Paul Scully added: “While the government is providing £37bn ($45bn, €43bn) this year to help families with the cost of living, it is disgraceful that scammers are using the difficult times families have been facing to try and rip them off.
“I urge everyone to report scams to Citizens Advice so we can stop these crooks in their tracks.”
‘Ever-evolving beasts’
Myron Jobson, senior personal finance analyst, at Interactive Investor, said that although scammers “wreaked havoc” during the pandemic, they are now exploiting people’s worry and fears as they struggle to make ends meet.
“The fear is history could repeat itself amid the biggest fall in living standards in generations,” he said.
“Crooks have gotten creative in how they go about their illegal activities. More and more people are being conned by standard fraud schemes, such as postage and impersonation scams, which are becoming increasingly difficult to recognise, because they constantly alter their disguises.
“Financial scams are ever-evolving beasts that need taming. The hope is the Online Safety Bill will go some way in plugging the flood of financial fraud. There isn’t a silver bullet solution, but we can all do some things to add a layer of protection against them.
“This includes using strong, different passwords for each account also helps and signing up for and using protections such as two-factor authentication, which generally requires users to not only enter a password, but also confirm their identity by entering a code texted or emailed to them.
“We all need to remain on our guard against scams. In addition to the basics, which include not sharing your login credentials and ensuring that online transactions are made from secure and trusted websites, be mindful of who you disclose personal information to and remember that if a proposition seems too good to be true then it probably is.”
