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Monday 1st Frebeuary 2010
Scams affect one-in-10 Britons, says OFT
Almost 10% of adults - more than 4m people - in Britain say they have responded to a scam in their lives, the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has said.
Almost a half of those who did respond to a scam had lost more than £50, while 5% lost more than £5,000.
The OFT said 73% of adults had received a scam e-mail in the past year.
It is launching a "scamnesty", calling on consumers to drop scam mailings into designated boxes at public places or into an online "bin".
OFT chief executive John Fingleton said: "Scammers are using ever more sophisticated and cunning tactics to dupe people out of their cash.
"We want people to recognise the warning signs, and feel confident enough to seek advice from friends or family or from Consumer Direct."
Consumer Minister Kevin Brennan said the government had spent £7.5m to create "scambuster" teams across the UK.
"We are determined to fight these crooks," he said.
The National Fraud Authority has estimated the cost of fraud - including scams, online theft, insurance cheats and tax fraud - at £30bn year in the UK, the equivalent of £621 per adult.
The OFT is giving the following advice to help avoid being scammed:
•Stop, think and be sceptical. If something sounds too good to be true, it probably is
•Don't rush to send off money to someone you don't know, however plausible they might sound
•Ask yourself how likely it is that you've been especially chosen for this offer - thousands of other people will probably have received the same offer
•Think about how much money you could lose from replying to a potential scam
•Seek advice
Source: BBC News