Scams increase by almost a fifth in last three months as scammers’ secrets revealed

Barclays is urging the public to be wary of the psychological tricks used by scammers as the bank’s latest data reveals a 17 per cent rise in reported scams over the last three months.

Analysis among consumers supports the data and highlights a 70 per cent increase in scam attempts over the last quarter.

Worryingly, almost a third (31 per cent) admit they wouldn’t know what to do if they found themselves being targeted.

Criminals carrying out scams usually apply psychological tactics to con the public, including applying pressure; creating illusions of scarcity; or pretending to be a trusted authority to ‘socially engineer’ their victims.

Aston spoke to Dr Pete Brooks, behavioural scientist at Barclays and Sian McIntyre, head of economic crime at Barclays.

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