Barclays current account scam!

colsten

Zanderman wrote: »

I'm not sure there's any evidence, part from coincidence, that there is any link between the first call, clearly genuinely from the bank - otherwise the new card wouldn't have arrived), about dodgy transactions resulting in a new debit card (perfectly normal behaviour for a bank in the circs) and the second call, clearly from scammers.suggesting moving all the money to a 'safe' account (something a bank would never do - they'd just do what they did after the first call, again)

Has the OP suggested there's a link? I would suggest there isn't one.

One was a series of ultimately unsuccessful fraud attempts that the bank detected and sorted out.

The other was a completely different modus operandi that fooled the OP into transferring all their money to fraudsters. Why would they be the same fraudsters?

The fraudsters knew

1. the old card number, plus PIN and/or security code as they made purchases with it
2. the OP's mobile phone number
3. that the OP had received a new debit card
4. the new card number plus PIN/security code as they made a purchase with that card, too (although it is not clear whether this was actually the case or whether the fraudsters just said there had been another purchase)

I reckon there is every likelihood that it was one and the same lot of fraudsters, and that they are probably close to the OP. As I said earlier though, it's really a matter for the Police.

jonnygee2

The scammers knew an awful lot about the OP. Initially, they knew enough to make some payments with the OP's old debit card. Then they knew his mobile phone number. Then they knew that he'd been sent a new debit card. Then they made yet another payment with that new card.

The mobile number and card details are easy, there are lists of these you can buy on the internet. Most probably, from a compromised website the OP uses which stores these details, or a phishing site they entered them into at some point before.

They probably committed the first fraud online. They tried the details again and found the card was blocked, so they knew the OP's card was cancelled, so they waited a few days until they figured he had a replacement and tried their luck with the phone number - using their knowledge of the card replacement to build trust.

It doesn't sound like they actually made a payment with the new card - as the OP says he couldn't see the transaction on his mobile banking (but they said this was because they had 'cancelled it').

It can be reported to actionfraud , but the money will likely be long gone.

Zanderman

colsten wrote: »

The fraudsters knew

1. the old card number, plus PIN and/or security code as they made purchases with it
2. the OP's mobile phone number
3. that the OP had received a new debit card
4. the new card number plus PIN/security code as they made a purchase with that card, too (although it is not clear whether this was actually the case or whether the fraudsters just said there had been another purchase)

I reckon there is every likelihood that it was one and the same lot of fraudsters, and that they are probably close to the OP. As I said earlier though, it's really a matter for the Police.

Maybe, I'm not convinced though!

The OP says the fraudsters referenced the new debit card when they rang him back (actually the third call, the second of the actual successful fraud). maybe they did. Because maybe they did know already.

But, and I'm speculating here, the OP could easily have referenced the new card themselves, in that or the previous (second call) call. Easily done - a call from 'the bank' about fraud, a few days after a call from the bank about a fraud - I'd reference it, wouldn't you? Saying something like 'Gosh, I thought we sorted that out last week didn't we, I did get the new card you sent me'

Fraudster, on hearing this, would surely take advantage and pretend to know. After all, pretending to know is their great skill isn't it?

OP might not even recall that they mentioned it first.

In which case, of your 4 points, not all apply. The first applies to the first, bank-detected, fraudsters, the second to the second, successful fraudsters, the 3rd and 4th are the second fraudsters pretending.

Happy to be wrong, but just saying!

phillw

This is a very common scam, however there is one important part which I don't understand.

There is no reason that they would setup a safe account to receive the money, but require you to transfer the money yourself. Banks exist purely to transfer money, they can do it without your help.