Scammers have become increasingly sophisticated in their operations which can make it hard to detect when someone is trying to deceive you online.
According to law firm CEL Solicitors, some fraudsters are using the trusted reputations of popular celebrities and posing as the likes of as high-profile film stars to dupe people out of their hard-earned money.
The family-run firm which works with clients nationwide has seen a rise in fraud involving celebrities, along with romance scams which see scammers create a false online relationship with their victim before asking for money.
Being on the receiving end of a scam is a difficult experience, but it's important to remember that it's not the fault of victims. CEL Solicitors could help people who have lost £3,000 or more to get money back via its no win, no fee claims process.
'I've finally got my life back'
With the popularity of online dating, scammers are taking advantage of people seeking love in attempts to con them out of thousands of pounds.
Once they've built up a rapport with their victim, a common approach by scammers is to generate believable stories to gain sympathy and financial support.
One of CEL Solicitors' clients who does not wish to disclose her identity, but is going by the name of Sarah in this article, fell victim to a romance scam after developing a relationship with a man on an online messaging app. He claimed to be stationed in Afghanistan with the US military, and said he was a single parent having lost his wife when his son was three years old.
After speaking for several months, Sarah sympathised with the man and his son's situation. He told her he wanted to leave the military to give his son a better life, and went on to ask her to make payments so that he could be relieved from duty, which he promised to repay.
When Sarah made the payment but the man didn't arrive in the UK, Sarah realised she had been scammed and reported it to the police as well as trying to get the money refunded by her bank.
She said: "I tried to get my money back from the bank, but they refused to give me a refund. I then plucked up the courage to call CEL Solicitors, which put me at ease and made me realise just how many people get scammed every day.
"I was hesitant to get in touch because of the way I was scammed. I was embarrassed and felt ashamed about what had happened."
After making a financial complaint, CEL Solicitors was able to recover Sarah's money, plus interest, from the bank.
Sarah added "Some people are too proud to ask for help, but don't be. They don't judge and will support you. I've finally got my life back."
Celebrity scams
The popularity of famous actors and musicians is increasingly being taken advantage of by scammers, with some celebrities even warning their fans of cases of identity fraud.
Such cases can see fraudsters prey on fans, asking for payments for memberships or VIP fan clubs. When claiming to be the celebrity, scammers will commonly say they are using a 'private account', before asking for money to help with a financial problem or 'catfishing' the celebrity as part of a romance scam.
Chloe Roche, fraud team leader at CEL Solicitors, said: "The lure of a celebrity is compelling for someone looking for love online. Sadly, manipulative scammers make the impossible seem possible, often playing on people's vulnerabilities to get their hands on their cash.
"A lot of scammers often re-target their victims, posing as professional advisers, so it's always important to check the credentials of anyone offering to help you get your money back from a scam."
No, win, no fee
CEL Solicitors operates on a no win, no fee basis. Paul Hampson, managing director at CEL Solicitors, explained: "We believe in helping clients get affordable justice. Victims have often lost considerable sums of money, which means they can’t always afford legal fees. Scammers also often retarget victims by offering to help for an upfront fee – another ruse to scam more money.
"We help fraud clients on a “no win, no fee” basis, which means they have nothing to lose. If for any reason they are unsuccessful then they won’t pay us a penny.
"If successful, then the usual position is that we recover our costs from any money recovered. However, in addition to recovering money lost to scammers, we are also usually successful in securing 8% interest from the date the money was lost and compensation, which in higher value cases covers our costs. Any deductions are clearly explained at the start of the case."
To find out more about how CEL Solicitors could help you, click here.
