How to protect your pension against fraudsters
The Financial Conduct Authority has noted that pension scams often involve attractive offers. The scammers want you to let them have money from your pension pot or even transfer the whole amount.
A free debt adviser can help you to find out what options you have, if you’re worried about money and want to pay off debts by using your pension. You can use MoneyHelper’s debt advice locator to find free debt advice near you.
The FCA has listed the following warning signs of pension scams:
- You will definitely get a better return on your pension savings.
- Sales tactics that put a lot of pressure on you
- Investments that are unusual and are high risk and not regulated
- Complicated structures, so you can’t see exactly where your money will end up.
- More than one group (some of which may be based overseas) take a fee, so that the total amount deducted from your pension is significant.
Meanwhile Which? has written that with less than 12 months to go until pensions are brought within scope of inheritance tax, Standard Life has issued a warning about the increased risk of scams.
It is said that “research from Standard Life has highlighted how uncertainty surrounding the changes could make savers more vulnerable”.
Here, Which? examines how you can protect your pension against fraudsters as inheritance tax rules are changing.
Delivery scam text message warning
It has been argued that the biggest giveaway that a text message is a scam is how quickly it is asking you to act. Scammers often send messages that try to persuade you into acting straightaway. It is argued that you should stop and think if you get any message claiming that your parcel needs immediate payment, is about to be returned or is on hold, is written in such a way that it causes panic in you.
You are also advised that if the text asks you to click a link, you should treat it as suspicious, “ignore the link, open the courier’s genuine app myself, and check my deliveries there. If there’s no issue showing on the official app, the message gets deleted”.
Scam text messages are another area of concern for Which?, who state: “These messages may tell you you’ve missed a delivery, need to pay an additional charge or that your delivery is delayed and instruct you to follow a tracking link.
“If you are concerned about a delivery you are expecting, visit the couriers website directly by searching for it on your search engine. Or you can follow one of these links”:
Royal Mail Yodel Evri DPD DHL UPS
How to report a scam
The government has issued advice about how to report scams. They encourage people to report misleading emails, phone numbers, websites, text messages or phone calls which you think may be suspicious.
You are also advised not to let people you don’t know have any bank details, passwords or other personal information, and if you have any worries about how genuine the sender is don’t download attachments, click on any links or reply to text messages.
Which? has also issued important information about how you can help to defeat the fraudsters and help others by reporting scams here.
Beware misleading requests
Meanwhile the Intellectual Property Office and Companies House have asked businesses to watch out for misleading requests for payments, sent by organisations not connected to the government.
Typically, these requests come in the form of invoices requesting payment for IPO and Companies House services.
The government also states that invoices can be sent by email, although they are usually posted to the registered address of the company involved. These invoices may ask businesses for payment at a much higher price for services which are available from the legitimate sources, Companies House, IPO or IP attorneys, for free or at least a much lower fee.
They usually ask for payment to:
- Set up or claim your online account for Companies House
- Verify your details or authenticate your Companies House account
- Include your trademark on an ‘exclusive online register or to renew it
For more information about this, please see here .
Seven links you should never click
Which? has also warned of seven links that you should never click on. They are as follows:
- Suspicious ads on social media
- Messages regarding missed deliveries
- Websites which copy legitimate websites
- QR codes from car parks
- Emails saying that they have information about you which they will share if you don’t pay them (ransom emails)
- Password reset emails you haven’t been waiting for
- Most messages which contain links
For more information about avoiding dodgy links please see here .
Don’t put your data at risk – see which apps can access your Apple or Google account
Many people use ‘Sign in with Apple’ or ‘Continue with Google’ without thinking about it. This is because it is convenient, fast and means one less password to remember.
However, as time goes on you can end up with many apps linked to your accounts.
Please see here how to check which apps can access your Apple or Google accounts.
The bogus boutiques ripping off shoppers
Online shoppers are facing a new and mounting problem; dodgy online shops, which use touching back stories and slick imagery to lure people in.
Which? have noted that consumers who had made fashion purchases, were helped by Citizens Advice about eight or nine times an hour throughout 2025 . They found that Artificial intelligence (AI) is being used more and more so that people can be fooled by dodgy shops into buying things that simply don’t look like the way they are advertised.
82% of complaints that Citizens Advice sees are about accessories, shoes and clothes bought online, and that “one in 13 involved scams, including shoppers thinking they were buying items from UK-based companies”.
To learn more about how to avoid dodgy online shops please see here.
Scam sharer tool
There is a scam sharer tool you can use to help others to avoid being victims. You can find the tool here.
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