Scam?

Notepad_Phil

z6982667 said:

BUT, they have his Name, possibly his Date Of Birth(he can't remember if he gave it) and Phone number - is this now a problem?

The phone number could very well prove to be a problem as it will very likely be sold onto other scammers and he could be offered many other 'opportunities'. Some of these may be very persuasive and you may not get there in time. There are some ways that you can try to reduce the number of calls e.g. https://www.which.co.uk/consumer-rights/advice/how-to-stop-nuisance-phone-calls-aBrCM2T5PBD2 . Personally we found that just having an answer phone stops the majority of calls regarding e.g. Amazon fraud if you just let the call go through to the machine and only pick up when you recognise the caller - but that might not be enough in this case as the scammers may be more persistent given that he nearly fell for this scam.

tempus_fugit

ColdIron said:

Read the whole of this thread, it's a very common scam and carbon copy of yours down to the 'very professional looking & convincing' brochure

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6181929/aviva-fixed-term-savings/p1

Yes, I keep hearing this “very professional” and “very convincing” stuff. A teenager at college could make a “very professional” looking brochure and it’s easy to “sound convincing”. There is no substitute for making your own, independent research before parting with any money. Always check with the purported companies via their official contact methods, not those in any communication received, and for anything pension related check with pension Wise as they will tell you for free what is legitimate and what isn’t.

tempus_fugit

DavePart said:

Thanks for all the reply's guys. I have forwarded the email to CitiBank fraud dept.
As to how they got my details? I simply don't know, I have been looking at investments lately on google, so can only assume that was their way in.
It is quite scary, the brochure attached to to email was very professional looking & convincing, but I did suspect & your replies have confirmed my suspicions.
He is calling me back this afternoon, could be an interesting 'phone call.
Sincere thanks to you all

I wouldn’t even speak to him with it being an obvious scam. These people can be very persuasive and an awful lot of people are still taken in even if they have misgivings. Just be very careful.