British Gas Scam Warning

Dyfed Powys Police is urging British Gas customers in the area to be alert to an email scam in circulation.

The Force has received a report of the scam and is now warning people to be aware that any email purporting to be from British Gas asking for passport and drivers’ licence information is a scam.
The British Gas email scam is one of many currently happening throughout the UK and beyond.

Detective Sergeant Rob Gravelle, a specialist within the Digital Communications and Cybercrime Unit, said: “Thankfully, the person who reported this to Dyfed Powys Police realised it was a scam but our concern is that others may well believe the email is genuine and pass on this personal information.

“Fraudsters often use the names of well-known companies to commit their crime, as it makes them seem more legitimate.

“I would urge anyone who is approached in this way to delete the email without opening. Also, tell your family and friends about this scam to prevent them for being duped. If in any doubt at all, contact British Gas directly to find out if they are asking for such information. Never use a telephone number used on the ‘scam’ email.”

Top tips on how to avoid cyber scams:

If you weren’t expecting the call, do not enter into conversation with them, provide them with any personal details or send them any money

Never log onto your computer as a result of a cold call claiming your computer has a virus or viruses – again do not engage in dialogue on such a call

Install up-to-date antivirus security software

Keep your computer up-to-date with the latest software patches and updates

Delete suspicious emails and social media messages without clicking on links
Be security-conscious on social media sites: log out when you’re done and don’t connect to people you don’t know
Regularly change and use strong passwords and don’t share them with anyone. Make sure that you don’t use the same password for all of your accounts. This will mean that even if one password is compromised, it will only affect one of your accounts
Be careful about what you share online, don’t give away more personal information than you need to on social media sites and back up important files and media content to safe and secure storage solutions i.e. external hard drive/ trusted cloud storage.
Further Information
For further advice and information on how to avoid being scammed online please visit Get Safe Online www.getsafeonline.org.
To report online scams call 101 or report online at www.dyfed-powys.police.uk.