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How do I protect myself from fraud?

The best ways to protect yourself from fraud include:

1. Be aware of how fraudsters may contact you.

We know that criminals are:

  • Telephoning people;
  • Using websites to offer fake services;
  • Using email addresses that look official but are not.

2. Be aware of the tricks they might use.

Criminals try to make you believe that they can offer you something very easily, such as a visa, or that there is a problem with your application or visa.

They will try to make themselves seem very genuine and may use language that sounds official. They may already seem to know something about you, such as your name and address, or that you have applied for a visa. Then they ask you for money or for your personal information.

3. How to protect yourself

You should be suspicious if:

  • What they offer seems too good to be true, like an easy job abroad, or a way to get a foreign visa quickly and easily;
  • They ask you for money in ways it can't be traced. For example, they may ask you for cash or to pay using insecure payment methods such as money transfer, vouchers or gift cards (which you buy at a shop);
  • They ask for your bank account or credit card details, or confidential information. Remember: Revolut, your bank, tax authorities or the Police will never ask you to move money to another account;
  • They demand secrecy or try to force you to act immediately;
  • The website does not look professional (badly written or designed) or does not include any information about the organisation;
  • You are asked to reply to a free email account such as Hotmail, Yahoo Mail, or Gmail which may also contain poor grammar and spelling;
  • If someone contacts you threatening legal action or a fine if you don't transfer money, do your research or get legal advice before taking any further action;
  • Never download software if someone is claiming to work for Revolut, your bank, the Police or a tax authority as they're trying to access your personal information.
  • Fraudsters may have some details about you. Just because someone knows your basic details doesn't mean they're genuine.
  • Revolut will primarily contact you via our in-app chat. If we do need to contact you over the phone, we'll give you a heads up. If you receive a call you're not expecting, it might be a scam.

If you are suspicious:

  • Do not give out any personal information, or confirm that any personal information they have is correct;
  • Do not pay them any money;
  • Do not pay them using electronic vouchers.

More about fraud

Fraud is when trickery is used to gain a dishonest advantage over another person – this is often financial, There are many ways to describe fraud: scam, con, swindle, extortion, sham, double-cross, hoax, cheat, ploy, ruse, hoodwink, confidence trick.

Most popular fraud schemes:

  • Advance Fee Schemes: when the victim pays money to someone in anticipation of receiving something of greater value – like a loan, contract, investment, or gift – and then receives little or nothing in return.
  • Business fraud consists of activities undertaken by an individual or company in a dishonest or illegal manner designed to be advantageous to the perpetrating person or establishment.
  • Charity fraud schemes seek donations for organisations that do little or no work. While these scams can happen at any time, they are especially prevalent after high-profile disasters.
  • Credit card fraud is the unauthorised use of a credit or debit card, or card number, to fraudulently obtain money or property.
  • Identity theft occurs when someone assumes your identity to perform a fraud or other criminal act.
  • Internet fraud is the use of Internet services or software with Internet access to defraud victims or to otherwise take advantage of them.
  • Investment fraud is an offer using false or fraudulent claims to solicit investments or loans, or providing for the purchase, use, or trade of forged or counterfeit securities.
  • Nigerian letter frauds combine the threat of impersonation fraud with a variation of an advance fee scheme. A letter is mailed, or e-mailed, from Nigeria, offering the recipient the 'opportunity' to share in a percentage of millions of dollars that the author – a self-proclaimed government official – is trying to transfer illegally out of Nigeria.
  • Pyramid/Ponzi schemes, where money collected from newer victims of pyramid schemes is paid to earlier victims to provide a veneer of legitimacy. In pyramid schemes, however, the victims themselves are induced to recruit further victims through the payment of recruitment commissions.
  • Reverse mortgage scams are engineered by unethical professionals in a range of real estate, financial services, and related companies to steal the equity from the property of unsuspecting senior citizens, or to use these seniors to unwittingly aid the fraudsters in stealing equity from a flipped property.