Consumer watchdog Which? have discovered that members of the public are getting WhatsApp messages telling them that their delivery has failed. These messages are coming from compromised business accounts and include links to copycat Evri websites.
Evri and Whatsapp
Evri is a parcel delivery organisation, which is said to “provide cheap and convenient parcel delivery services, using our network of over 18,000 friendly parcel Couriers”. Evri says that they deliver as many as 700 million packages a year to over 220 countries and territories worldwide.
There are said to be four new examples of these scams. The messages tell you that the courier has been unable to deliver your parcel because there was no answer when they knocked on the door, before providing a link to follow “in order to reschedule a new delivery.”
The messages are said to be poorly written, a clear sign that it could be a scam and includes a link that doesn’t go to Evri’s official website; the genuine website is evri.com.
It is also noted that Evri was one of the five delivery brands most impersonated by fraudsters, with one of the scam websites looking very realistic, with UpToDate branding and logos. It was said to ask for “your personal information, including your name, phone number, date of birth and home address as well as your bank card information”. This would give scammers a lot of useful information about you to use in the future.
Spotting scam websites
Which? have the following advice to help you to spot a scam website:
If you come across a website that you’re suspicious of, Which? recommend that you do the following:
“Type it into who.is to see when it was created because newly formed websites should be a red flag. Which? checked the site impersonating Evri and found that it was created under a week ago.
“Check the web address – brands typically have one official website, so anything else should be treated with caution.
“Check the links on the website. On the scam Evri site, all of the links were dead links, meaning they didn’t lead anywhere, showing that the website is just a front to get your data.
You can report scam websites to the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) on its website.
Reporting scam websites
To report a scam website go here to the site here.
You can report a WhatsApp user, by opening up the chat, tapping on the sender’s account and selecting ‘block and report’.
If you lose any money to a scam, you must call your bank immediately using the number on the back of your bank card and report it to Action Fraud found here, or call the police on 101 if you’re in Scotland.
Are you vulnerable to scams?
It has been reported that in the 12 months up to November 2024, as much as £11.4 billion was stolen from UK customers through scams, with “rogue delivery messages, shopping and investment” the most common. Customers were said to have lost £1 400 on average and 1 in 2 had felt a strong emotional impact as a result of the scam. However, 71% did not report these scams to police or law enforcement officers.
Which? have noted that while everyone is a potential scam target, if you have recently had a change in your health or other circumstances then you are particularly likely to be at risk.
To check to see how vulnerable you are to scams, click here.
Fake Which? website taken down
Which have also reported that scammers have attempted to establish a fake Which? website, which has subsequently been taken down.
How to spot a fake website
In order to help you to spot a fake website, Which? have suggested the following:
Firstly, you can check what is the correct website for Which?. This should be which.co.uk, including subdomains such as computing.which.co.uk. Scammers are hoping that victims don’t look too closely at the web address or the e-mail.
Watch out for unusual requests or messages, even if they seem to come from friends, relatives or colleagues. Contact the individual on a trusted phone number to make sure it was really them.
Keep clear of adverts you spot online. Scammers are able to pay to appear at the top of your social media feeds and malicious adverts are very common so try and avoid them completely.
You could also use a free domain checker such as ICANN Lookup . This will tell you when the website was set up and the real Which? website was set up in July 1995.
Scam sharer tool
If you come across a scam, you can help others to avoid it by using this scam sharer tool found here.
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