Is this letter a scam?
Check four things. Does it ask for money or a password rather than information you already gave them? Is the phone number different from the one on the organisation's own website? Is the payment method a bank transfer, a gift card, or a QR code? Does it push you to act today? Two or more, and treat it as a scam.
· 4 min read
A posted scam has one advantage over an email: it arrives on paper, with a logo, and it feels checked. That is the whole trick. The paper is not evidence of anything.
The four checks
- What do they want? Money, a password, or a card number. Real letters usually want information you have already given them, or a payment to an account you already use.
- Which number is printed? Compare it with the number on the organisation's own website. If it differs, stop.
- How do they want paying? Bank transfer, gift card, or a QR code. Legitimate organisations rarely ask for any of the three in a first letter.
- How urgent is it? A threat of immediate action, a 24 hour window, or a penalty that expires today is pressure, not process.
Two or more of those, and it is not worth a phone call to find out. Go to the organisation's site yourself and look up the account.
The one test that settles it
Look up the organisation independently and ask whether they sent it. Not the number on the letter, and not the link in the letter. The real site, the real number, the account you already know.
It takes four minutes and it is the only check that cannot be faked by a good printer.
If you already replied
If you gave card details, call your bank now and ask them to stop the card. If you gave bank details, tell your bank and watch for unexpected direct debits. If you sent a transfer, call the bank the same day, because the first hours are the only ones where a recall is possible.
Change the password you gave, and anywhere you reused it. Then report it to the national fraud reporting service, which takes about ten minutes and helps the next person.
What a real letter looks like
Real letters tend to be dull. A reference number you can look up, a payment method you have used before, a named department, and a deadline that is measured in weeks rather than hours. Boring is the signal.
Questions
How can I tell if a letter is genuine?
Find the organisation independently and ask. Compare the phone number on the letter with the one on their website, and check whether the account or reference exists when you log in yourself.
What if I already gave them my bank details?
Call your bank the same day and explain what you shared. Ask them to watch the account for new direct debits, and cancel the card if card details were involved. Speed matters more than anything else here.
Should I call the number on the letter?
No. That is the one number the sender controls. Look up the organisation's number separately, or walk into a branch, and ask them whether the letter came from them.
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