Mortgage scams
If you ever need to move large amounts of money, like when you buy a house, it could be a target for a scam. But if you know what to look out for you can stay safe.
What to look out for:
- Emails that ask for a payment - Scam emails can pretend to be from your solicitor and ask for a payment. Fraudsters like to hack into emails to try and get you to send money to an account they control.
- A new bank account - Scams will say a bank account has changed or can’t be used right now. If an email asks for a payment to a different bank account then it’s probably a scam.
- Urgent payments - Scams try to get you to pay quickly. If you get an email that asks you to pay right away, it’s probably fake.
What you can do:
- Check account details - If you get an email that asks for a payment, call the sender to double check the sort code and account number. But call from a number you trust, not the one in the email.
- Look for mistakes - A scam email can have spelling mistakes in the address and message. You can call the sender to make sure it’s a genuine message. But call from a number you trust, not the one in the email.
- Stay safe online - You should use strong passwords that only you know. This can help to stop people from hacking your account. Use a new password for each online account. You should also keep your anti-virus, operating system and browser up to date. And be careful if you use free WiFi to check your emails.
- Make a small test payment - If you need to pay a large amount of money, you can send a few pounds first. Then you can call to make sure the person got it before paying the rest. But call from a number you trust, not the one in the email.
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