In Bolton, police are working with banks to raise awareness of scams  - especially at this time of year, when everyone is busy shopping online, making the most of Black Friday deals.

Detective Sergeant Stacey Shannon of GMP’s Economic Crime Unit, said: “The police support staff and volunteer team, which is managed by me, we work together with banks and agencies to support victims of fraud.

“Anyone who has been a victim of any type of fraud, including bank and credit card fraud, we provide them with educational advice to empower them and how they can protect themselves in future.

“Studies show that once somebody has fallen victim to bank and credit fraud, they are 60 per cent more likely to be re-targeted by fraudsters. Our team works pro-actively with the community to assist with recovering funds and during an investigation, should it go that way.

(Image: Leah Collins) “We do talks, pop-up stations and get out into the community around Greater Manchester. "We have a pop-up station on the 5th December in Bolton known as the Halifax event between 10am and 1pm to give advice to the community on how to stay safe against trends in fraud.”

Seargent Shannon added that from January – September in Bolton alone, victims of fraud lost over £3 million and 740 people reported their experiences to Action Fraud.

(Image: Leah Collins) She said: “It’s a significant amount, last week along in Bolton there were nine victims of fraud with a total value of £10,000.

“These numbers seem scary, we want to reassure the community here at GMP that we are doing everything we can to protect those victims, assisting in reporting these crimes and looking at what measures we can do to safeguard.

“One of the main frauds we are seeing now is online shopping fraud, there were 4 reported victims of online shopping last week in Bolton.

“Telephone related fraud is also becoming more prevalent, there were four victims of phone fraud in Bolton last week alone.”

Whilst fraud can happen to any person of any age group, Seargent Shannon notes that there are three age categories that are most vulnerable to fraud; over 65, under 18s and, surprisingly, an increasing demographic aged 30 – 40 years.

(Image: Leah Collins) “We think those aged 30 – 40 are becoming more susceptible to fraud because they’re increasingly going online. People have busy lifestyles, if a fraudster catches you at that moment – a vulnerable moment in your life, that’s when people become susceptible.”

It’s something, unfortunately, I am all too familiar with having been frauded over £4,000 as a university student during the busy exam period over the phone. The voice on the phone, worryingly enough, knew confidential information that is usually retained by just the bank.

For a long time, I was embarrassed to tell my family, friends and peers about the situation as I didn’t understand how I could’ve been so susceptible.

I'm not alone, the ONS data shows that over 60 per cent of victims in 2023 were emotionally affected by fraud. A further 8.8 per cent of respondents described themselves as being 'very much' affected by their encounter. 

(Image: Leah Collins) It’s the specific sense of urgency, Seargeant Shannon adds, that scammers use to force victims to comply with demands by creating a sense of panic and discomfort: “There’s always an urgency with fraudsters to create a sense of unease in their victim.

“For example, some have now reported getting text messages, claiming to be from their child, who allege that they have lost their phone and need money urgently.

“We’re also seeing an increase in online shopping frauds. People order high value goods such as hair extensions, clothing or trainers and when it arrives, it’s not the designer brand at all, it’s just a fake product. Or they just don’t receive the product at all.

“It’s pretending to be a person or business that they’re not and exploiting people at their most vulnerable.

“Once the information is extracted and compromised, it is likely passed between organised crime groups. But the funding doesn’t necessarily always go to that fraudster, they could even just be a mule.

“The stolen money can go towards all sorts of things. It could go towards funding terrorism, organised crime groups, drugs or offensive weapons.

"My biggest piece of advise would be to keep passwords long, strong and complicated. If you do get a call out of the blue, just stop and think could this be fraud.

"The bank will never ask you to send money. Neither will the police or any other government agency."

Just last month, the government proposed new regulations that will give banks the power to power to pause payments for up to four days to give them more time to investigate fraud. The legislation came into effect at the end of October.

The rules will come into force a few weeks after the introduction of a stricter mandatory scheme on fraud compensation. Those new powers, which came into force earlier in October, will see fraud victims receiving up to £85,000 in refunds from banks within five days of an authorised push payment scam.

With Black Friday around the corner, banks across the country are urging shoppers to remain diligent with their personal details.

A spokesperson from HSBC said: “HSBC UK data shows that, in the first two weeks of November, there were four times as many purchase scams reported to the bank than any other type of scam.

(Image: Leah Collins) “Purchase scams are when a customer pays for an item or service which does not materialise, and their money is lost.

“Many Black Friday sales began at the start of the month and fraudsters have been exploiting those seeking genuine bargains with ‘deals that don’t exist.

“During the same period, the average loss to a purchase scam was £426. Individual losses range from as little as £10 for phony nail bookings to much larger amounts for non-existent items like washing machines, tickets and cars.”

David Callington, HSBC UK’s Head of Fraud, said: “Sadly, we’ve seen fraudsters getting a head start on Black Friday, and we’ve had hundreds of purchase scams reported to us already this month.

(Image: PA Media)  “My fear is that they’ll be getting a bumper payday on Black Friday and over the weekend, funded by the hard-earned cash of unsuspecting shoppers.

 “These fraudsters do not give their victims a second thought. They have no sympathy for families struggling with the cost of living or for those whose Christmas is ruined by their despicable actions.

“The average victim loses hundreds of pounds to these scams, which for many people is equal to the majority of their monthly rent or mortgage repayment, money they simply can’t afford to be without.

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“I would urge those seeking a Black Friday bargain this year to be on the lookout for signs that what appears to be an extraordinary deal is, in fact, a scam.

“There are simple things you can do to protect yourself, such as researching retailers and using safe ways to pay such as debit or credit cards.”

New measures aimed at cracking down on benefit fraud will give investigators “direct access” to people’s bank accounts.

This comes after chancellor Rachel Reeves announced this week that the Department for Work and Pensions will be given enhanced legal powers and more resources for anti-fraud work.

Bolton has seen several high-profile fraud cases in recent years, connected to both benefits payments and to other institutions. 

MP for Bolton West, Phil Brickell said: “We need to get tougher on those who exploit the system.

(Image: Office of Phil Brickell) “Tackling financial crime and fraud is personal to me. I spent over a decade in the private sector and before I became an MP I was Head of Anti-Corruption for a major high street bank.

“This is not about targeting genuine claimants or trying to trip honest people up. The public purse loses billions to targeted and organised fraud taking advantage of our system.

“Trust in the system is very important and we must protect our welfare benefits for those who genuinely need it.”

Got a story? Email me at Leah.Collins@newsquest.co.uk