ID fraud - mail scams
A recent twist on the identity fraud front has been reported to the Fraud Wing at Merseyside Police. A house owner had put his house up for sale and had an estate agents board outside. He received a pack through his letter box suggesting that as he would be moving home, he should think about having his mail redirected. This pack gave the impression that it had been sent by the Post Office.
The house owner filled in the form that was included in the pack and sent if off to the address that was on the documentation.
Some time later he received a telephone call from a bank asking some questions about the credit card that he had applied for. This of course was news to him and he made some enquires with The Post Office, to be told that they were not responsible for sending out the mail redirection literature.
Lessons to be learnt
Never assume that anything that is sent to you by post, or is communicated to you by phone fax or e-mail is, from the people or person who they say they are.
Just because a leaflet is made to look like something sent from a bank or building society or anywhere else, it doesn’t mean that it has come from there.
If you receive a phone call from anyone saying that they are from your bank, electricity or gas company, they might well be from those companies, or they may not. Be very suspicious if they ask for personal information. Any genuine company will not ask you for personal information, particularly by phone.
If you receive a phone call from anyone suggesting that you need to pass over any personal information, terminate the call and make your own enquires using a number that you know to be genuine for that organisation.
If you receive post like the house owner above, make enquires to make sure that the company is genuine before you commit your personal information to them.