Research for the Take Five To Stop Fraud campaign, run by banking and finance industry body UK Finance, indicates that more than a quarter (27%) of parents have been tricked by purchase scams. A purchase scam is when someone pays for goods or services and they never turn up. Anyone can be a victim of a purchase scam (Image: Canva)They persuade them to make bank transfers and then disappear when the payment has been made. This can either be done through fake websites or fake ads on social media. The volume of purchase scam cases has grown by 43%, from 53,907 in the first half of 2022, to 76,946 in the first half of 2023.

Source: The Times November 20, 2023 00:10 UTC