Trading Standards Alert
Trading Standards have received reports that there is a scam email circulating stating that people are entitled to a refund of their TV Licence fee.
The aim of the emails is to steal bank details. The link in the email sends people to a website that looks like the TV Licensing own website with a form to complete.
Always be suspicious of unsolicited emails that are supposedly from a trusted organisation because the address can easily be faked. Never a click on any links before stopping to check that they are genuine.
Genuine emails from TV Licensing will never ask you to provide bank details or personal information.
For further details regarding TV Licences and how to obtain a refund please visit their official website at www.tvlicensing.co.uk
Protect yourself
7 ways to spot an email you’ve been sent is a scam:
- The sender’s address doesn’t match the website address of the organisation it says it’s from. Roll your mouse pointer over the sender’s name to reveal its true address.
- The email doesn’t use your proper name – using something like “Dear customer” instead.
- There’s a sense of urgency, asking you to act immediately.
- There’s a prominent website link which may seem like the proper address, but with one character different.
- There’s a request for personal information.
- There are spelling and grammatical errors.
- The entire text of the email is within an image rather than the usual text format and the image contains an embedded hyperlink to a bogus site. Again roll your mouse pointer over the link to reveal its true destination.
If you believe that you have been a victim of fraud you can report it online http://www.actionfraud.police.uk/report_fraud or by telephone 0300 123 2040.