In last decade incident of online fraud has risen by 179% according to infosecurity magazine. It is more important than ever to protect yourself for online fraud. Remember if it is too good to be true then it probably is. Trust your instincts.. Don’t give out personal information to people you do not know. Always double check identity. Do not trust unknown attachments and texts. Always use a protected payment method and always report fraud.
Here are some top tips to help protect yourself and your business.
- Never allow yourself to be pressured into making a payment quickly without checking thoroughly first as this is when mistakes are made and fraudsters know this.
- Fraudsters pose as banks and HMRC and offer to help you – simply say no and ask for their details to call them back once you have checked
- Ask them to send any request in writing by post – avoid emails.
- Verify new payment requests and details with a known contact by phone or in person – avoid emails as they can be intercepted or monitored.
- If you receive an email check the email address carefully if it is obviously a random email and unknown then avoid replying. Block and delete it.
- Check the email address for disguised appearance where the name is similar but not right e.g. for Microsoft the email contains ‘ms’ or ‘msoft’ or any variation its likely to be a fraudster
- Never share one-time passcodes
- Do not share online banking secure key codes
- Use longer passwords with a mix of capital letters and numbers and special characters. The longer passwords are very difficult to guess or hack.
- Do not download remote access software especially if it is from an unknown party as this is how they get access to your computers devices and saved password.
- Educate your staff as they are an important defence against fraud and usually are the first point of contact for fraudsters.
- Simply say no to people asking for access to your computer or devices and user names and password until you have checked everything and are happy.
Should you get a call from HMRC demanding tax money or offering you help avoid a serious fine or imprisonment then contact us immediately.
As a client of ours we always know what you need to pay and when and HMRC will write to us and you.
If you would like to discuss any issues or incidences with ElanTax then please contact me or your account manager by phone or email.
