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- Barclays customer sent genuine looking message from scammers
- Cottoned onto the fraud attempt - but 'dissatisfied' with bank's response
- Message shows how easy it can be for bank customers to become a victim
A Barclays customer who was targeted by a fraudster looking to steal his account details says he has been left 'dissatisfied and perplexed' by the treatment he has received from the bank. Ray, from Liverpool - who wishes not to have his surname printed - transferred a large amount of money using the bank-run Pingit service to his daughter on 10th September 2015. Less than 24 hours later, he received a genuine-looking message purporting to be from Barclays wishing to confirm a £900 direct debit to telecoms giant BT.It said: 'If you did not set up this payment, please urgently call fraud prevention.' The message then lists a phone number and a reference number to quote. More alarmingly, the message appears on the same Barclays SMS thread as the genuine payment to his daughter just a day earlier.
When he called, it was a voice recording asking for specific account details such as the number and sort-code. Ray says: 'I became suspicious and subsequently hung up. 'Concerned that somebody was trying to access my account details, and that the message came from the same number as my Pingit messages, I rang Barclays to find out.' He had used the Pingit service numerous times in the past. He said after an hour and 15 minutes on the phone to Barclays complaints department, he was offered a payment of £37.50. He was then told the matter was closed. Ray asked to have the complaint escalated as he felt it was important for it to be properly investigated. However, approximately a week later, he received a letter stating once again the complaint was closed and he had been credited with £37.50. Ray adds: 'The letter outlined the number mentioned in the message was not a Barclays number and there was no need for further investigation. It never mentioned at all that the message originated from the Barclays Pingit service.'He contacted the banking giant once more and insisted the complaint was re-opened adding that he now has 'no faith his money is safe at Barclays.' But once more he received a letter stating the complaint was not being reopened and there was 'nothing to investigate.' Ray adds: 'I am perplexed as to why Barclay's don't acknowledge that there is an issue with fraudulent messages asking for account information originating from their Pingit service or what they intend to do to stop it and reassure their long standing customers.'.....Read more here