Nationwide shared the warning on Twitter last week alongside a game to help its customers to spot the red flags of a potential Advance fee scam. The bank tweeted an image of a “spoof” online advert and asked its customers to point out what makes the advert a scam. The tweet said: “Have you ever been asked to pay an advanced fee?”
“We’ve created a spoof Facebook marketplace ad selling a phone. But can you spot the signs which could prove it’s a scam?”
The image attached to the tweet included a screenshot of a Facebook marketplace advert for an iPhone 13 Pro phone selling for £350 with the image in the advert being the phone box.
The advert details said: “Like new phone for sale! Price is cheap to sell fast Lots of interest so if you want to secure, a £35 deposit is required BEFORE pickup.”
Nationwide customers flooded the tweet with comments about how the advert looked “dodgy” with many pointing out the correct signs that it looked like a scam.
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One Twitter user @UKSVacher said: “Deposit before pickup, picture of a box and not the phone, no profile picture, only joined Facebook this year and price too good to be true.”
Another user, @SarahDawson83 also clocked the “red flags” and responded: “Just a picture of a phone and not even an iPhone at that no Apple symbol. Unrealistic price. Wanting money upfront. No profile picture. Only recently joined Facebook.”
In response to the guesses, Nationwide highlighted that deposit before pickup, no profile picture on an account, and that the account in the image had only recently joined the social media site were all signs that the advert could be illegitimate.
In the tweet, Nationwide included a link to its website page which explained fully what Advance fee scams were and what they could entail.
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On its website, Nationwide highlighted further warning signs of a payment which could be an advance fee scam.
The building society stated that “it may sound obvious” but if it doesn’t make sense to pay upfront then it may be a scam.
An example of this is if someone is asked to pay a fee to access prize draw winnings or for a parcel to be sent.
Nationwide also told people to note if they have been “contacted out of the blue” or with “suspicious” contact details.
It said: “If you haven’t ordered the item, haven’t entered yourself into that prize draw or weren’t looking into that service, you shouldn’t be contacted. And you especially shouldn’t be asked to pay any money.
“If you’re contacted online, double check their contact details. Does the email address look legitimate and match the company that’s emailing you?
“When checking contact details, never use the contact details the person has given you. Research the company online and compare its official contact details. If they’re not the same, this is likely to be a scam.”
Another warning sign is if a person is being pressured to “pay quickly or with an unusual method”.
Nationwide stated that if there is pressure to make payment, particularly with unusual methods such as cryptocurrency, then it is a scam.
Finally Nationwide stated that if someone is not told about any upfront fees when they made the purchase they “they’re not trustworthy” and there is likely “no guarantee that by paying the fee” a person will receive what they are owed.
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