Bank of Ireland writes to one million customers warning them about fraud

Fraudsters are becoming more active.

Charlie Weston

Bank of Ireland has written to more than one million personal and business customers this week to warn them of the risks of investment fraud.

The warning comes as research it commissioned has revealed that Irish consumers are being targeted by scammers with increasing regularity.

The Red C survey found that 94pc of the population say they have received a fraudulent text, email or phone call in the last 12 months.

Investment fraud is on the rise with 77pc growth nationally in cases reported last year.

The bank has been the victim of a growing number of false articles appearing online designed to defraud consumers through fake financial products, investments or cryptocurrency schemes.

The articles appear like news articles from genuine media outlets, but are false advertisements that fraudsters are paying for online.

The advertisements feature fabricated news stories with claims about specific cryptocurrency trading platforms or designed to entice readers to websites where they can then be defrauded.

Bank of Ireland warned that more people are being caught out every day with some losing all of their life savings.

According to the Garda National Economic Crime Bureau, reports received by Gardaí from victims of fraudulent texts increased by over 30pc in 2023.

Criminals impersonate legitimate investment companies by copying their websites and brochures.

These fake websites offering shares, bonds and cryptocurrencies look professional and their “advisors” can seem genuine.

Bank of Ireland has issued advice to its customers to warn of the ‘red flags’ associated with investment fraud, and the steps that people can take to safeguard their finances against fraud attempts.

The bank said red flags that a consumer is being targeted as part of an investment fraud include people being called after clicking on an ad for an investment product on social media or in a sponsored search result.

There is a promise a quick and profitable return, with little or no risk.

The callers advise the consumer that they must act quickly to take advantage of an “opportunity of a lifetime”.

People getting the calls are told to make an urgent payment to get in on the deal.

Another red flag is an instruction from the caller that the consumer is not to discuss the “investment” with family, friends or their bank.

People may be instructed to sign a “non-disclosure agreement” (NDA), Bank of Ireland said.