Stuart Anderson MP has launched a new campaign to tackle scams and associated activities that use emails, text messages, and phone calls to deceive others - often trying to rush them to make decisions and pay out money or share personal data. As part of this, Stuart is inviting residents to find out how to better identify and deal with scams. The campaign collides with Scam Awareness Fortnight, which is taking place between the 13th and 26th of June 2022.
Stuart is proud to support the national campaign being organised by Citizens Advice, together with the Consumer Protection Partnership of consumer advice and enforcement agencies - of which the Department for Business, Energy, and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) is a member. It brings together key partners within the consumer landscape to better identify, prioritise, and coordinate collective action to tackle those issues causing greatest harm to consumers and collects regular intelligence on scams as they emerge.
Stuart has said that it is more important than ever before to empower and protect people from scams. It comes as Citizens Advice research has found that 71% of people in the West Midlands have been targeted by scammers since the start of this year. More than three quarters of UK adults had been targeted by a scam, a 14% increase compared with last year.
Now, Stuart has called on the Government to do more to help protect consumers in Wolverhampton South West from scams and illegal activities such as this. He has said that everyone must be equipped with the knowledge and confidence to report scams and to raise awareness about this issue in their own communities. It includes Action Fraud, the national reporting service for fraud and cybercrime, which can help individuals raise their awareness of these sorts of scams and obtain advice on how to combat these scams. They can be contacted by phone on 0300 123 2040 or www.actionfraud.police.uk. Individuals can also access advice on how to spot a scam and how to report one through the Citizens Advice website. Citizens Advice refer cases onto enforcement agencies including local Trading Standards where appropriate. They can be contacted via their Consumer Helpline on 0808 223 1133 or website: www.citizensadvice.org.uk.
Stuart Anderson MP said: “Scammers will exploit any vulnerabilities that they can to steal money or personal information from somebody else. These activities are illegal and have a devastating impact have upon individuals and wider communities. I want to ensure that everyone is well-informed on how to protect themselves and others from such opportunistic criminals who seek to profit from scams and associated activities. Scam Awareness Fortnight is an important time to raise awareness of these crimes and clamp down on them from occurring. I want to thank everyone involved in these efforts to make Wolverhampton a better and safer place for everyone, whether online or offline.”
With the help of Citizens Advice, Stuart has published a webpage with further support at www.stuartanderson.org.uk/scam-awareness. Find further information about Scams Awareness Fortnight at www.citizensadvice.org.uk/about-us/our-work/our-campaigns/awareness-raising-campaigns/scams-awareness-campaign-2022/ #ScamAware