More than one in 10 shoppers ‘have fallen for purchase scams’
About four in 10 (42 per cent) of the more than 2,000 people surveyed said they are worried about falling victim to a purchase scam.
Christmas shoppers are being warned to watch out for purchase scams, as more than one in 10 (11 per cent) people say they have been duped.(Steve Parsons / PA Wire)
Christmas shoppers are being warned to watch out for purchase scams, as more than one in 10 (11 per cent) people say they have been duped.
Purchase scams happen when criminals try to tempt shoppers with heavily discounted prices, but the goods never arrive or are fake or shoddy.
They may ask for a bank transfer – rather than payments via methods such as PayPal or cards which could give shoppers greater consumer protections.
Scammers may also clone genuine websites, so it is worth checking the URL and looking for the padlock/https tags which indicate a website is secure.
Despite the risks, about one in eight (13 per cent) people said they would buy items that appear too good to be true, without carrying out basic checks, the research, from Nationwide Building Society found.
About four in 10 (42 per cent) of the more than 2,000 people surveyed said they are worried about falling victim to a purchase scam.
Nearly a third (35 per cent), meanwhile, claim they would never fall for a purchase scam – rising to 49 per cent of 16 to 24-year-olds.
Nationwide said its own data shows the highest proportion of purchase scam victims are aged 21 to 30, accounting for more than a quarter (26 per cent) of all cases.
The majority of people (60 per cent) surveyed aim to buy their gifts via websites of well-known retailers. Nearly a quarter (24 per cent) of shoppers will head to social media or auction websites and a fifth (20 per cent) will opt for lesser-known websites.
Two thirds (69 per cent) of people store their details on websites to make it quicker to check out, but Nationwide cautioned this can be a risk if the website is hacked.
On average, people have their details, including card details, on eight websites – while 13 per cent do not know how many websites their details are stored on.
Recent changes in regulation require “strong customer authentication” which helps prevent fraudulent use of card details online by someone else without the account holder’s knowledge.
Shoppers may be asked to authenticate purchases via their banking app or by inputting a one-time passcode sent to them.
Nationwide recently introduced a scam checker service enabling its members to check a payment if they are worried about it either in branch or by calling a 24/7 freephone number (0800 030 4057).
If they check before making the payment and it is given the go-ahead and the member is subsequently scammed, Nationwide will fully reimburse the loss.
Ed Fisher, head of financial crime at Nationwide Building Society, said: “With ongoing supply chain issues this year it may be harder than ever to find that must-have present.
“This may mean people are more tempted than ever to shop on websites they haven’t heard of or turn to private sellers for a bargain.
“Remember, if something looks too good to be true, it probably is.”
Get all the latest news, updates, things to do and more from your local InYourArea feed.
