Spot scams, stop scams game

There's a scam for just about everyone and every situation.

Are you scam aware? Take our quiz and find out ....

You’ll be presented with four different scams. Within each there are a number of clues to indicate it is a scam.

Circle the part of the image that you think might be a clue.

When you think you’ve found all the clues, move on to the next scam

Spot scams, stop scams game

Lottery scam

  1. you should keep your good luck a secret – genuine lotteries thrive on publicity. If they ask you to keep your win a secret it’s likely to be a fraud.
  2. correspondance – many lottery scams letters contain bad spelling and grammar.
  3. the following details – always be suspicious when asked to give lots of personal details.
  4. as soon as possible – scammers will often attempt to instill a sense of urgency.
  5. hotmail.com (claims agent email address) – be suspicious of email addresses that are free to get hold of, such as Hotmail, Gmail & Yahoo.
  6. 07023 449329 (claims agent phone number) – this is a premium rate international number. You’d be charged.
  7. staff’s – many lottery scams letters contain bad spelling and grammar.

Online auction scam

  1. image – use of stock image suggests seller doesn’t have item.
  2. 23h 10m 2s – scammers use 24-hour sales to quickly complete before they are spotted by the auction site.
  3. (0) (number after seller name) – watch out for sellers who have no sale history.
  4. No feedback – watch out for sellers who have no feedback.
  5. our latest SatNav technology – watch out for item descriptions that are obviously copy and pasted from a company’s website.
  6. LIMITED TIME ONLY – scammers often try to create a sense of urgency to close transaction quickly.

Courier scam

  1. Please verify this by calling the number on the back of your card straight away – the scammer will keep the line open while you dial so your call stays with them.
  2. dedicated fraud investigation officer – it’s not clear who this is. It’s another scammer.
  3. PIN – banks never ask for your PIN.
  4. details of any other accounts – banks should already have this information.
  5. a courier – banks will never send a courier to pick your card up.

Investment scam

  1. 4UFX Forex Brokers – this form is on the FCA list of unauthorized firms to avoid.
  2. out of the blue – legitimate companies are unlikely to call you out of the blue.
  3. saw from your portfolio – scammers will do their homework.
  4. rare earth metals – often scammers try to entice you with unusual or exotic investments. A big one currently is rare earth metals.
  5. prices are set to rocket–it’s difficult to find and track prices of rare earth metals as they are sold on private markets.
  6. high quality stock – rare earth metals are distributed in varying mixtures of purity so you can’t be certain what you are paying for.
  7. add some more to your investment – scammers will continue to push you for more money.
  8. a hot tip – scammers often suggest they have inside knowledge of markets you’ve never heard of.
  9. We have intelligence that you have been scammed – scammers may pass your details on to other criminals who could target you with a fraud recovery scam.
  10. a one-off fee – law enforcement will never ask for fees to investigate fraud.

Spot scams, stop scams game