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Money Saving Expert Martin Lewis has issued an urgent warning over a new “clever” Post Office scam doing the rounds.
Martin has told people to be on their guard against the fraud, which involves a text urging them to reschedule delivery of a parcel.
It is a variation of a similar Royal Mail scam that was circulating earlier this year. That one instructed people to pay £1.99 to receive a package but Martin said the new scam is “less obvious” as it doesn’t tell you about any payment due until you click through on a link.
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In a warning to his followers on Twitter, he said: “Beware. Just had a clever version of the ‘pay £1.99 for Post Office Parcel delivery’ scam text, aiming to steal bank info. The ‘fee’ isn’t mentioned in the text, it talks about ‘delays in transit’ and offers ‘a date to reschedule’. It’s only when you click thru it mentions a fee.”
The text reads: “PostOffice: Sorry we missed you earlier, we have your parcel, to book a redelivery please visit (scam website)”
There are also reports of the folowing messages being received:
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“Your parcel has been returned to your local branch. Please visit (scam website) to reschedule delivery.”
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“We tried to provide your item to you today however received no answer. To book a new date please visit (scam website).”
The text message is designed to catch those out who are genuinely waiting for a Post Office delivery. and Martin said: “It’s clever because it’s morphed and is now less obvious.”
Twitter user KatieLDN noted she had received the same scam text, and almost got caught out by it. She wrote: “I got this – off my guard at the end of a long day at work. Thankfully clocked it before I’d put card details in, but I immediately got a second scam text pretending to be from my bank. So even if you realise, they’ve got a plan to try and scam you a second time as you panic!”
If you have received a text, don’t click on the link. The website links often look genuine and will take victims to a convincing Post Office website clone. Once on the website, the victims will be asked to enter personal information such as full name, delivery address, email address, date of birth and mobile number.
All of this information can be used to commit identity fraud. Some people will also use a combination of this information to form passwords.
What should you do if you think you’ve been scammed?
- If you’ve responded to a scam, end all contact straight away and do not engage any further with the caller
- Call your bank directly and cancel any recurring payments – or most people can call a new hotline set up to report scams on 159
- Report the scam to the police through Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040, or report anonymously on the Action Fraud website.
- If you need more help, contact Citizens Advice Scams Action via the Citizens Advice website, or call its Scams Action helpline on 0808 250 5050.
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