HMRC energy bills scam email imitates Government website logo – how to spot fakes | Personal Finance | Finance
A worringly convincing scam email purportedly from HMRC has been reported which imitates link to the Government website.
A person received the email on April 2, which includes a bogus link which generates a ‘Welcome to GOV.UK’ button, appearing to link to the Government website.
The fake email reads: “Dear [the person’s email address]
“We have sent you a letter regarding Energy Bill Support Scheme. Check it today in order to get your funds released:
“[link appearing to go to ‘GOV.UK]
“Best regards,
H.M.R.C.”
Simon Miller, head of Communications and Policy at Stop Scams UK, told Express.co.uk: “Scammers are becoming more and more sophisticated in the way they manipulate their victims.
“The creation of fake buttons or logos is yet another attempt to lure consumers into thinking they’re interacting with a genuine business or government body.
“The use of AI has made this easier for scammers, particularly in terms of creating logos and buttons that can be difficult to distinguish from the genuine ones.
“This is a particularly busy time of year for scammers. We’ve just started a new tax year, contracts for mobile phones and other utilities are likely to be renewed and there are changes to energy prices too, so consumers need to be especially vigilant.”
The Energy Bills Support Scheme was a £400 energy bills payment that went out to all UK households over the 2022 to 2023 tax year.
Although this scheme is finished, there have been other cost of living support measures in recent months, and so people may be duped into thinking they are owed funds.
Scammers often imitate legitimate groups to get people to click through to fake websites under their control, where victims hand over personal and financial information.
One sign as message may be fake, as in the case of this email, is when it is addressed to a generic title, such as using a person’s email address, rather using the person’s name.
Martin Lewis recently warned his fans that criminals are imitating his likeness to promote their scams in their efforts to “steal your money”.
He posted on X: “With the Bitcoin price up, scammers are again using social media ads using my (or others) fake endorsement to pretend you’re buying it. In reality they are just trying to steal your money.”
Mr Lewis never does adverts for financial products or investment schemes, so if you see an advert with his endorsement, you can be sure it is fake.
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“The use of AI has made this easier for scammers, particularly in terms of creating logos and buttons that can be difficult to distinguish from the genuine ones.
“This is a particularly busy time of year for scammers. We’ve just started a new tax year, contracts for mobile phones and other utilities are likely to be renewed and there are changes to energy prices too, so consumers need to be especially vigilant.”