Latest scams

Stay safe this festive season

The festive season should be a time of joy, but it’s also prime time for fraudsters. In 2025, scams have become more convincing than ever, with criminals using AI and social engineering to trick people into parting with both their money and personal details. Here are 12 scams to be mindful of.

Scam alert: Latest digital threats

Criminals are using AI to craft realistic phishing emails, clone trusted websites and send personalised text messages that appear to come from banks, delivery companies, government departments or tech support teams.

Scam alert: DWP smishing scam

A growing concern within this space is DWP-related scams, where fraudsters impersonate the DWP to exploit vulnerable individuals.

How to protect yourself from digital wallet fraud

Across the industry, UK banks are reporting increasing instances of fraudulent spend using digital phone wallets, such as Apple and Google Pay.

Scam alert: 'Quishing' – the new phishing threat

QR codes are becoming more common in day-to-day life. Unfortunately, fraudsters are taking advantage of this technology by creating malicious QR codes, a scam called ‘quishing’.

Scam alert: Holiday booking scams

Scams involving holidays, flights and hotel bookings are on the rise. UK Finance reported that in 2023, a staggering £12.3 million was lost to holiday fraud.

Protecting yourself from investment scams

Fraudsters are constantly evolving their tactics, and we are seeing a noticeable increase is investment scams.

Scam alert: Weatherbys Fraud Team impersonation

We are aware that a small number of our clients have been contacted by fraudsters pretending to be from the Weatherbys Fraud Team.

Common points of compromise

Fraudsters use many different avenues to capture your personal and financial details, some of which may not be immediately apparent. Here are some common points of compromise to be aware of, along with tips on how to protect yourself.

Scam alert: Remote access fraud

This crime is a rapidly growing form of identity theft whereby scammers take control of your bank account and make unauthorised transactions. Remote access scams are dangerous and sophisticated.

Scam alert: Gift card scams

Fraudsters are increasingly favouring gift cards to scam us out of our money. They are easy to buy, are associated with well-known and trusted brands, are hard to trace and are nearly impossible to refund once the balance has been spent.

Scam alert: Fake concert, festival, sports ticket scams

Fraudsters are advertising fake tickets to concerts for artists such as Taylor Swift. They will promote them through social media platforms such as Facebook, or through fake websites of their own design.

Understanding the risks of speculating on cryptocurrencies

Fraudsters are very active in cryptocurrency markets, scams are on the rise and trading is still vulnerable to cyberattacks.

Scam alert: Inheritance impersonation scam

A tactic that is being more commonly adopted by fraudsters is impersonation. This is where someone pretends to be from a genuine organisation in an attempt to gain access to bank accounts or personal information.

Scam alert: ATM distraction fraud

Fraudsters continue to find new ways to commit ATM fraud, but the outcome is still the same – the distraction scam involves diverting the user’s attention away from the ATM in order to find out their PIN and then steal their card.

Scam alert: iSpoof impersonation

Impersonation fraud is unfortunately happening more and more, with opportunistic fraudsters using increasingly sophisticated techniques to scam unexpecting people out of their hard earned.

Scam alert: Cost of living and energy

As energy bills continue to soar, scammers are seizing their opportunity impersonate both energy firms and Ofgem

Scam alert: Pensions

Pension scams are posing a greater risk in the current climate with too-good-to-be-true promises of early pension access or higher investment returns.

Scam alert: Cryptocurrency

Cryptocurrency scams are soaring in the UK as criminals cheat hundreds of millions of pounds out of victims through cryptocurrency fraud.

Scam alert: Royal Mail

Royal Mail have been reporting an increase in fraudulent or phishing customer scams. Criminals are using text messages or emails relating to delivery, collection or redirection of a letter or parcel.

Scam alert: WhatsApp

Watch out for the current WhatsApp scam where criminals pose as a friend or family member and urge you to transfer money to them.

Scam alert: Courier fraud

Fraudsters are cold calling and pretending to be from your bank or from the police. They may claim there is an issue with your bank account, or payment card or request your assistance with an ongoing bank or police investigation.

Scam alert: NHS COVID Pass

Criminals are using the NHS COVID Pass as a way of targeting the public by convincing them to hand over money, financial details and personal information.

Huge surge in impersonation scams

There has been another surge in impersonation scams, with cases more than doubling in the first half of 2021. New figures from UK Finance report 33,115 cases, with criminals stealing £129.4 million through this type of fraud alone.

Scam alert: Impersonation of Weatherbys

We have been made aware of recent scams by phone and email in which fraudsters are using the idendities of our staff and claiming to work at Weatherbys Private Bank or Weatherbys Racing Bank.

Scam alert: DHL

A fake DHL text message which lures recipients into downloading a mobile app is the latest scam to be extremely vigilant of.

Scam alert: Bitcoin

Unsolicited emails promoting investment opportunities with the cryptocurrency, Bitcoin, is the latest scam to be extremely vigilant of.

Scam alert: FCA fake authority

Fraudsters claiming to be from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) using ‘fake authority’ scams have increased by 73% in 2020.

Scam alert: Fake investment scams

Action Fraud, the National Fraud and Cyber Crime Reporting Centre, has warned of a significant rise in the number of people falling foul of investment fraud.

Scam alert: Fake COVID-19 vaccine texts and calls

Criminals are continuing to use the confusion and urgency around the pandemic to target potential victims.

Scam alert: HMRC scam

Hackers continue to exploit business vulnerabilities in the wake of Coronavirus as business owners have been targeted by a new phishing scam that attempts to gain sensitive information, including payment details, by impersonating Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC).

Scam alert: Paypal phishing emails

Emails are currently being sent claiming to be from PayPal. These emails state the recipient’s account has been ‘limited’ as a result of a policy violation and ask for customers to update their account or check the security of their account by clicking a link in the email.

The “Little Book of Big Scams”

The ‘Little Book of Big Scams’ is a comprehensive guide on fraud prevention, written by the Metropolitan Police. It explains some of the most common scams in existence, ranging from the simple to the sophisticated, providing essential advice to reduce the chances of you being parted with your money or personal information.

Download the "Little Book of Big Scams"
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