Money transfer company Wise recently found itself at the centre of a scam that the National Fraud Helpline has called “one of the most sophisticated and convincing” they have ever seen.
It begins with legitimate-looking online ads, involves setting up a genuine transfer account, and ends with money siphoned directly to the scammers themselves.
Criminals are constantly evolving their tactics and finding new ways to get their hands on your money.
So, keep reading for a closer look at this particular scam and the other red flags and warning signs to look out for.
The sophisticated scam looked to part victims from their hard-earned savings and was incredibly convincing
Online fraud, such as phishing scams, was once much easier to spot. Incorrectly formatted email addresses, poor spelling and grammar, and clunky attempts to match a company’s branding were all immediate, and often obvious, red flags.
But scammers are improving, and online ads today are often indistinguishable from the real thing. The rise of AI has only made scammers’ jobs easier.
The recent “sophisticated and convincing” scam lured its victims in with a genuine-looking ad for a fixed-rate savings account. With interest rates slowly falling, the ad offered a rate only slightly better than the current average, making it seem more feasible and less likely to ring alarm bells.
Unfortunately, the ad was a scam. Clicking the link opened a form to provide personal details, and this led to a call back to discuss investment options. As well as the modest interest rate, English-speaking scammers also added to the plausibility of the offer.
Once the scammers have your details, they help you to open a genuine savings account, including helping you to set up passwords and two-factor authentication. Because the account is real, you’ll receive genuine correspondence from the provider, in this case, Wise.
But once you transfer your money into the account, scammers have all the details they need to transfer your nest egg back out again, and into their own account.
The lengths that these fraudsters have gone to are scary, but there are still some red flags to watch out for.
In this case, Wise does not offer the type of account the ad was offering, nor an account at the suggested rate. A simple phone call to the provider, using a number found independently, might have been enough to identify the scam.
The scam was a type of authorised push payment fraud that accounts for millions lost each year
A scam that tricks victims into voluntarily transferring money to a scammer’s account is known as authorised push payment (APP) fraud. In 2024, losses from this type of fraud cost UK consumers £450 million.
This is a huge figure, but there is some good news too. UK Finance, in its Annual Fraud Report 2025, confirms that APP losses, while still huge, fell by 2% compared to 2023. The number of overall APP cases dropped by 20%.
The downturn has several causes. New regulations have helped to ensure that providers work hard to detect such fraud within their business. Consumers are also becoming increasingly savvy, partly thanks to UK Finance’s ‘Take Five to Stop Fraud’ campaign.
2023 also saw the introduction of mandatory reimbursement, which means that you will likely get your money back if you fall victim to an APP fraud.
Take Five to Stop Fraud is an Action Fraud initiative to encourage vigilance
At Globe IFA, we’ve written a lot about scams and keeping yourself safe, especially online. Most recently, you might have read ‘Everything you need to know about Data Privacy Day and the danger of online scams’, which we published back in January.
In it, we included a number of important steps to take and red flags to watch out for. These included:
- Choosing a strong password and never sharing it
- Identifying phishing and smishing scams and what not to do
- Not rushing decisions in the face of time-sensitive offers
- Being wary of “guarantees” and “once-in-a-lifetime” deals
- Remembering that pension cold-calling is banned.
To help consumers take an objective step back, Action Fraud began its Take Five to Stop Fraud campaign. This asks consumers to:
- Stop – Taking a moment to think before replying to a message, clicking a link, or parting with money or information
- Challenge – Look for red flags that might suggest a contact is a scam and hang up the phone, close the email, and delete the text, or verify the message using contact details you find yourself.
- Protect – If you think you have fallen victim to a scam, contact your bank immediately and report it to Action Fraud at actionfraud.police.uk or by phoning 0300 123 2040.
Knowing the warning signs to look out for could be the difference between falling victim to a scam and keeping your money safe, so always be vigilant and take five.
Get in touch
Please email hello@globeifa.co.uk or call us on 020 8891 0711 to discuss how Globe IFA’s expert financial advisors can help you manage your long-term financial plans.
Please note
This article is for general information only and does not constitute advice. The information is aimed at retail clients only.
