Citizens Advice Plymouth tells people to be alert and check out any investment opportunities flagged up via social media
People are being warned not to fall for online investment scams after a Plymouth woman was conned out of more than £60k. Citizens Advice Plymouth have revealed how a woman, named only as Shelly, was tricked by a company she found on social media which promised to make her “investing dream” a reality.
But the dream became a nightmare and Shelly was left needing debt advice from Citizens Advice Plymouth. It is now urging citizens to watch out for unsolicited approaches by social media adverts, phone calls, text messages, emails “or even a person knocking on your door”.
A spokesperson for Citizens Advice Plymouth said: “Always check the legitimacy of the opportunity by researching online, such as checking their website, reviews and warnings from other people. If they have just telephone and email contact details on their website it might be fraudulent.”
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Citizens Advice Plymouth revealed how Shelly, who lives in Plymouth, was contacted via social media and thought the company was legitimate so answered the ad. The spokesperson said: “Fraudsters asked her to download an app allowing her to make easy money transfers. Unaware of the dangers of remote access scams, Shelly revealed her personal details and transferred some money to scammers.
“Initially, her investment…
