Fraud Awareness Week - 5 Ways to Avoid Fraud

1. ONLINE SHOPPING:  Watch out for FAKE SITES, especially on the lead up to Black Friday sales!  Be particularly aware of websites which only display vague contact details.  A legitimate company will have a place of business, phone number or email address to contact them on.  Another warning sign can be spelling and grammar mistakes on the site (or on an email sent).

2. SOCIAL MEDIA:  Ensure your profile is PRIVATE and watch out for FAKE PROFILES trying to sell you items or directing you to click on links.  Especially be cautious if someone is contacting you out of the blue and are asking you to share personal details but can’t confirm they are who they say they are.

3. USE A CREDIT CARD for online purchases as opposed to your debt card. Credit cards can come with extensive fraud protection.  Most major credit card providers protect online purchases and are obliged to refund you in certain circumstances.  Using a credit card also means that if your payments details are stolen, your main bank account won't be directly affected.

4. AVOID PURCHASES WHERE YOU’RE ASKED TO PAY IN AN UNUSUAL WAY.  Such as cryptocurrency or bank transfer.

5. IF THE OFFER LOOKS “TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE” it probably is.  Something to be mindful of when you see a particularly cheap holiday listing!

Are YOU scam-savvy?  Why not try this quick quiz from Take Five-stopfraud.org.uk. 

Scammed? Where to report Fraud:

If you are scammed, defrauded or experience cybercrime you can report this to Action Frauds reporting tool.  When you sign up this enables you to save and resume a partially completed report, track progress of your report and add information to your report. 

Harp and Crown Credit Union and YOUR account safety:

Our staff are all CTC security cleared and undergo extensive training (cyber security, data protection and more). 

We will never conduct unsolicited calls asking you for your personal details and we will never share your information with third parties (Privacy Policy).

If you’re ever concerned about someone pertaining to be a Harp and Crown CU staff member, please contact us immediately at creditunion@harpandcrown.co.uk or phone 028 9068 5198. 

The Harp and Crown Credit Union provides safe, secure, flexible finances for the wider police family in Northern Ireland.