Phishing emails promise free money

Fraudsters are phishing for what remains in fraud victims’ bank accounts under the guise of British anti-fraud campaign Action Fraud.

An email using the City of London Police logo – Action Fraud works closely with it – has circulated offering free money from the Fraud Intelligence Unit and National Fraud Intelligence bureau.

The fraudulent email says that HSBC and the South African Reserve Bank have been chosen to handle compensation claims.

Going by the number of complaints that The Register receives each month regarding Action Fraud’s tardiness, those who may have been defrauded in the past are likely to be suspicious simply receiving any correspondence from the organisation at all.

This type of scam, known as recovery fraud, targets people who had formerly been a victim of fraud with promises of compensation for the money they’ve lost. The fraudsters attempt to acquire confidential details from victims in order to defraud them for a second time, and in some circumstances request fees in order to speed up the release of the recovered money.

For those in doubt: It’s a scam. Don’t click the links, don’t open the attachments. Delete the email