Nationwide has issued an alert to millions of its members after people have had money taken from their accounts.
The world’s largest building society has announced that customers can access a new service to help protect them from this while on the phone. The building society has launched a new Call Checker feature, designed to confirm to customers that they are genuinely speaking to Nationwide and not a fraudster.
The Call Checker service has been introduced following research from Nationwide which found that the average Briton receives eight scam calls monthly, equating to two per week.
Impersonation scams result in millions of pounds being lost annually, with Nationwide’s own customer data indicating they account for 17% of all reported scams.
Criminals who impersonate banks or building societies affect people across all age groups, though Nationwide’s figures demonstrate it disproportionately affects those aged over 65 (with 55% impacted). However, approximately one in six (16%) 18-34 year olds and nearly two in ten (19%) of 50-65s have also lost money.
Call Checker provides customers with reassurance that they are speaking to a legitimate Nationwide colleague. It supplements its existing Scam Checker service, which is utilised by 100,000 people and prevents £300,000 monthly from being lost.
The new tool allows customers to immediately verify whether the call they’re receiving is legitimate through Nationwide’s banking app. Customers can access the app, navigate to “More”, then “Call Checker”, and instantly see whether they’re on a call with Nationwide.
The screen will show either “You’re on a call with Alex” or “You’re not on a call with us.”
Scammers are becoming increasingly bold in their attempts to impersonate a customer’s bank, requesting victims to divulge personal details (50%), provide security codes (34%), transfer funds (31%), and even instructing them to deceive their bank or building society (15%
This allows them access to the victim’s bank account and by encouraging them to lie to their bank, often suggesting they claim they are making a payment to a friend or relative, they can avoid detection and face fewer checks than a high-risk transaction such as an investment. ).
Jim Winters, Director of Economic Crime at Nationwide, warned: “Scammers are becoming more sophisticated, and impersonation calls are one of the most common ways they trick people into handing over money. We are programmed to trust people and when someone uses clever tactics and well-practised scripts – often putting us under pressure or making us panic – it can be hard to know who to trust.
“Our Call Checker feature gives our customers peace of mind by confirming if a call is genuine, or not. It’s a simple and effective step that could prevent someone from becoming the next crime statistic.”