TIM DREW: Major new campaign to tackle financial fraud

The campaign – Take Five – is aimed at “target hardening” consumers and businesses so that they will avoid getting caught out in the event of some fraudster claiming to be from their bank or from the police calling them unexpectedly.

It is supported by all the major banks and other financial service providers across the UK.

Our financial institutions do work hard to protect their customers – in the UK last year, their innovative systems prevented 70 per cent of attempted fraud from actually happening.

The 30 per cent that did occur, however, cost the nation £755million.

We are all being asked to protect ourselves from financial fraud by remembering and acting on the following five points:

n Never disclose your security details, such as your PIN or password.

n Never assume that an email request or caller is genuine – remember that neither the police nor your bank would ever ring you in respect of alleged fraudulent activity on your account.

n Never be rushed – a genuine bank or organisation will not object to your asking for time to think. In any case, it is illegal to try to hustle customers into making a quick decision.

n Trust your instincts – is there anything about the message that does not ring true?

n Stay in control – don’t panic or else you may make a decision that you’ll regret. If you don’t feel in control of a discussion, end it.

In the meantime, our sponsor Co-op Insurance has warned against the use of counterfeit chargers for appliances such as laptops, tablets, mobile phones and e-cigarettes, as these figured largely in the 35 per cent increase in fire claims caused by electrical faults last year.

The Tarring Community Forum will meet on Tuesday (October 11), at 7pm at the West Worthing Baptist Church Centre, South Street, Tarring.

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