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Bank of Ireland claims investment fraud incidents grew by 77pc last year and has shared common ‘red flags’ people should watch out for to spot these scams.
Bank of Ireland says it has issued a warning to more than 1m customers over the rising risk of investment fraud.
The bank claims 94pc of the population – based on recent research – have received a fraudulent text, email or phone call in the last 12 months. Bank of Ireland also claims investment fraud in particular is on the rise, with a 77pc increase in reported incidents last year.
An Garda Síochána describes investment fraud as criminals posing as investment managers to trick people into investing money into schemes and projects that do not exist. Criminals can also sometimes impersonate legitimate investment companies by copying their websites and brochures.
Reports received by Gardaí from victims of fraudulent texts increased by more than 30pc last year, according to the Garda National Economic Crime Bureau.
Bank of Ireland has issued new advice to its customers to warn of the ‘red flags’ associated with investment fraud, along with steps people can take to safeguard their finances.
The Irish bank shared five red flags associated with these investment scams. One of these red flags is receiving follow-up calls after clicking on an ad for an investment product on social media, or in a sponsored search result.
Another red flag is if the investment advisors promise quick and profitable returns – with little or no risk. These scammers may also try to pressure their victims by urging them to act quickly and needing to pay quickly to get in on the deal.
The last red flag Bank of Ireland highlighted is secrecy – these criminals will tell victims not to discuss the investment with friends, family or their bank. In some cases, they may urge victims to sign a non-disclosure agreement.
“Bank of Ireland’s fraud teams intercept or prevent the majority of fraud attempts, and this is a 24/7 job,” the bank said. “In the remaining cases, where a fraud has been successful, all efforts are made by the fraud team to recover funds for customers.”
A report from FraudSmart earlier this year stated that authorised push payment fraud rose by more than 25pc in the first half of 2023 and that older people in particular are being tricked by investment scams.
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