Criminals often impersonate legitimate organisations in an attempt to dupe their victims and leave them out of pocket. So it’s important to be extra cautious if you receive a text message or a call from a number you don’t know.
Scam calls often involve criminals purporting to be from HMRC, your bank or from a legitimate business such as well-known energy providers or phone network providers offering better deals or ‘upgrades’ to your account. Texts often involve parcel delivery scams from various couriers or Royal Mail, or even scammers pretending to be your friends and family!
How to report and where to report
Most major communication networks have signed up to the 7726 service, making it very easy to report scams texts/whatsapps or calls to your mobile.
7726 is a number that most mobile customers using UK networks can text to report unwanted SMS messages or phone calls on a mobile. The number ‘7726’ was chosen because it spells ‘SPAM’ on an alphanumeric phone keypad!
The following Ofcom web page has some useful information on scam calls and messages:
https://www.ofcom.org.uk/phones-telecoms-and-internet/advice-for-consumers/scams
The link below takes you to a ‘How to report’ page and takes you through a very quick guide on reporting numbers to 7726 on iPhone or Android. The videos are very short and easy to understand.
https://www.ofcom.org.uk/phones-telecoms-and-internet/advice-for-consumers/scams/7726-reporting-scam-texts-and-calls
To report a scam text you copy the content of the text and start a new message to 7726, paste in the content and send the message. The service will then reply to you asking for the number the message was sent from. You copy and paste the number or manually type it in and send it as a message.
To report a scam call number you just need to copy the number, put it into a text writing ‘Call’ before you put the number in and send it to 7726.
When you’ve done this, it alerts your mobile provider to investigate the number and potentially block it from the network, if it’s found to be a nuisance.
Please also remember to block the number on your handset!
See below an example of what it looks like on your phone when you report these texts or calls.
If you have actually engaged with a scammer over the phone and been defrauded or given out personal information as a result, please report this to the police on 101 or Action Fraud: Action Fraud 0300 123 2040 or visit https://www.actionfraud.police.uk/
If you have been scammed or duped into contracting with a business or a trader, please report to Citizens Advice Consumer Advice Line on 0808 223 1133 or go to the following website to report online:
https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/consumer/get-more-help/if-you-need-more-help-about-a-consumer-issue/