THREAD🧵 Would you spot this text was a scam? 👀 I’ve been speaking to @ranvir01 on #lorraine this morning about an Apple Pay text scam doing the rounds… this fake DPD one very similar - here are my tips: 
⚠️ I always START from the position that ANY text, email or WhatsApp message containing a link is a scam. Rule number one!
⚠️ I was expecting a parcel on the day I received this text - but checking the retailer’s email about my order, I could see the delivery was not from DPD - and in any case, I have their app
⚠️ This SMS is from a standard UK mobile number - official messages would come up as DPD Group UK, not a +44 phone number. Another sign that it’s dodgy - I’ve now BLOCKED this number and reported it to my mobile phone provider
⚠️ Look at that link - Dpd (irregular caps) not DPD. The real company probably has a “head of brand” on £100k+ a year to check that every official communication is in caps! Bad spelling and added dots and hyphens are another clue it’s a hooky website
Still not sure? 👉 I then googled DPD with the key phrase “processing your parcel was unsuccessful” and found lots of hits online saying this was a scam message that others had received.
🤔 So what would have happened if I clicked? Others said when they were taken to a webpage and asked to make a payment for their DPD shipment to be “released”
🛑 If you fill out this form and give your payment details, you are handing the scammers valuable information - they will use this to come back with a more sophisticated scam and attempt to clean out your bank account. Here’s how…
📲 As an experiment, Google the first four digits of your payment card (the long number on the front) and you’ll be able to see what bank it’s been issued by, and whether it’s Visa or Mastercard. Spooky!
The scammers can use this information - along with your name, address and phone number that you’ve dutifully filled in - to fuel an “impersonation scam”. This is the fastest rising type of fraud in the UK right now. Here’s the typical MO…
☎️ A week later, you might get a call claiming to be “from the fraud department” of your bank saying there’s an issue with your account.
🎵 The scammers immediately sound more convincing, as they know exactly who you bank with. They may even have ripped off your bank’s holding music! They will pressurise and try to convince you that you need to transfer your money to a “safe account” - but there is NO SUCH THING.
🕵️ Fraudsters can impersonate your bank’s telephone number (number spoofing) to make it look like they’re calling from an official number. They may invite you to check this (“look at the number on the back of your card”)
If you’re not sure about incoming calls, do not feel stupid or embarrassed about hanging up and calling back on the official number - a genuine bank would not stop you from doing so. And better to look silly than lose thousands of pounds!
In THIS episode of my #moneyclinic podcast, I speak to listener Jenny who lost £17,000 in a scam just like this one - she bravely shared her story to help raise awareness of these sophisticated phishing scams: podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/mon…
And in THIS episode, recorded a year later, we reveal how @ftmoney helped Jenny to get her £17k BACK after her bank originally refused to refund all of the stolen money: podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/mon…
I don’t think the banks, internet giants or telecoms companies are doing enough to fight fraud, prevent it or raise awareness of these pernicious scams. And I told them so in my recent @FinancialTimes column! ft.com/content/a6c5ab…
📣📣So the next time you spot a scam text or WhatsApp message, TELL people 📣📣 Use your social networks to pass on details of the latest scams, help your friends and family members think twice before absent mindlessly clicking on a link that could wipe them out financially.
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