Fraudsters are getting hold of personal and banking details and pretending to be us on the phone. They’re tricking customers into sharing their passcodes, passwords and activation codes. Never share these with anyone, not even your bank.
You can be sent a passcode, password or activation code for a number of things – from signing in to an account to buying online with your debit or credit card. The code is a unique set of numbers or characters, a bit like a PIN number, which you’ll only use once. Usually, the code is sent to your phone or Mobile Banking app, but it can also be sent in the post, for example when you register for Online Banking.
Fraudsters use stolen information, like your name and account details to make themselves sound genuine on the phone. Usually, they’ll say they need the code or password to cancel a fraudulent payment or to secure your account – but watch out for other excuses.
If you share your code or password with a fraudster, they could use your account or card to steal your money.
How to avoid this scam
Passcodes, passwords, activation codes. Whatever you know them as, you should never share them with anyone, not even your bank. We’ll never call you out of the blue to ask for a code or password. If you get a call like this, hang up. It’s a scam.
