Investment scams occur when you get a cold call from someone pretending to offer you the opportunity to invest in a variety of schemes or products that are either worthless or don’t even exist. Fraudsters will pose as salespeople offering opportunities in shares, plots of land, gold or wine.
When offering opportunities, fraudsters will sometimes use publicly available information to impersonate genuine companies and employees.
Fraudster will apply pressure, saying the opportunity is only available for a limited period, downplaying the risks and suggesting you can sell if the investment is unsuccessful.
What to look out for
Chances are, any offer you receive out of the blue is likely to be a scam with the offer sounding like it is ‘too good to be true’. The fraudster will call repeatedly and be aggressive in their approach to ‘selling’ you this opportunity.
If you are considering an investment, always ensure that you do some research before carrying out a transaction. The Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) warning list details firms and individuals that the FCA knows are operating without the correct level of authorisation.