Over 76% Of Irish Targeted By Scams

The National Consumer Agency is using April Fool's Day to remind consumers to remain vigilant about scams and not to get caught out by con artists, as it publishes new research on scamming in the Republic.

The Agency's latest report, carried out during March 2010 by Behaviour & Attitudes, says that 76% of consumers claimed either they or a member of their family had been targeted by a scam, while 18% said they had been conned out of money or valuable personal information.

The research showed that while chain letters, foreign lotteries and pyramid selling schemes have the highest levels of awareness among the public, the scams claiming the most victims are in fact premium rate phone prize schemes and bogus callers and tradesmen.

Ann Fitzgerald, Chief Executive of the NCA, said: "There is no limit to the ingenuity of scam artists in devising new ways of parting people from their hard-earned cash. The age-old advice is as valid today as it ever was - If it looks too good to be true, it probably is."

Ms Fitzgerald went on to say there was a large variety of scams, including pyramid schemes, chain letters, dodgy prize draws, 'phishing' scams seeking to gain access to personal bank account details and boiler room scams where investors are sold worthless shares, foreign currency or other 'investments' using high-pressure techniques.

"We are being targeted by callers to our homes, over the Internet, via email, over the phone, by personalised letter and by leaflet drop. A notable feature over the past year or so is the growth in schemes seeking to capitalise on the current economic situation. The clear message is that there have never been more attempts to scam people, so consumers need to be extra vigilant," she added.

The NCA urged consumers to be cautious about "working from home" schemes, particularly those that offer easy money for little effort. While there are legitimate work from homes schemes out there, many are not legitimate.

Ms Fitzgerald urged consumers to thoroughly research any work from home offer, satisfy themselves that the business is legitimate and be sceptical of claims about how much can be earned and be mindful of any offer of work that requires payment of a cash sum up front.

The report warns that scammers are also becoming increasingly sophisticated and are localising their pitch to Irish circumstances. In the past year, the NCA found scams purporting to originate from Irish organisations or directly from the State - including an email alleging to be from the Revenue Commissioners offering a tax refund and a letter purporting to be from MABS offering a government grant.

"If you receive any such approach, make sure that you separately contact the body involved to confirm whether the initiative is genuine before parting with sensitive personal information or cash," Ms Fitzgerald advised.

(DW/GK)