What is Advance Fee Fraud?
__Understanding advance fee fraud __
A common scam is fraudsters persuading people to make upfront payments for fake goods, services, lending and financial gains. This is called ”advance fee fraud”.
If this has happened to you, please get in touch with us via this form as soon as possible.
Here’s some more info on how this scam works. The fraudster will promise you a significant share of a large sum of money, in return for a small up-front payment. Once you have made the first payment it’s likely they’ll invent more fees you’ll need to send.
Here are some examples.
A fee to release the funds after completing a loan application
A fee to cover the costs of background checks or a training programme for a job you’ve recently been offered (that may not exist)
A fee to receive money you weren’t expecting, possibly from a long lost relative
A fee to get your prize from a competition you’ve entered
In all these cases, they’ll always ask you to make the payment via bank transfer directly to them. This is a red flag for fraud. For more advice on how to keep yourself safe from fraud, head to monzo.com/fraud.
