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Reported fraud cases surpassed more than 413,000 during the pandemic
UK consumers are most worried about falling victim to text scams, as overall scams surged during the pandemic.
The consumer body Which? revealed that more than £2.3bn was lost in scams from 2020 up until April 2021 in the UK – with reported fraud cases up 33 per cent.
And according to research from Protect Your Bubble (PYB), text scams are the most concerning for UK consumers.
As part of its analysis PYB found that of the most-asked fraud-related terms, the ‘Royal Mail scam text’ as the most popular as 14,800 people on average search this each month.
This number has risen significantly during the pandemic, with Google search data putting the increase at 2,983 per cent since 2020.
Protect your Bubble director James Brown has warned consumers to be wary of the scams.
“With an increase in fraudulent text messages, it’s essential the public remain aware and vigilant when receiving them from well-known companies.
“It’s also important companies are following and advising customers on the correct behaviours to adopt when it comes to fraudulent activity.”
Other popular text scams included Hermes (5,400 searches per month), DPD (590) and phishing scam texts (390).