Online scammers targeting more women, police say

Women are now just as likely as men to be targeted by criminals through sophisticated investment scams

Women are now just as likely as men to be targeted by criminals in sophisticated investment scams, Surrey Police has said.

Operation Signature lead, PC Bernadette Lawrie told Radio Surrey that historically, pension-age males were the "typical demographic" scammers targeted with investments in diamonds, fine wines, stocks and shares.

However, she said fraudsters were "moving away" from traditional investments and targeting people through cryptocurrency or online-based platforms.

"It's anyone from ages 30 to 80, and both genders being approached on social media," PC Lawrie said.

Action Fraud figures show that 41% of all reported crime in England and Wales is estimated to be fraud.

In Surrey alone, victims of investment fraud have lost an average of £49,000 to investment fraud so far this year.

PC Lawrie said scammers were "clever and convincing", and put in a lot of effort and "groundwork in their criminality".

She said one victim in Surrey lost £350,000 after signing up to a crypto-based online trading platform.

Fake celebrity endorsements

"This is a heart-breaking story," she said. "The crime went on for a year and the woman was really groomed by the fraudsters."

PC Lawrie said the victim "really trusted them" and genuinely believed she was dealing with senior brokers from Goldman Sachs.

"She was lulled into a false sense of security. She took out loans and liquidated her pension to boost the investment," PC Lawrie said.

The victim had planned to use the "investment" to pay off her mortgage.

However, when trying to withdraw £250,000, she was instructed to pay a further £25,000 to "facilitate" the transaction.

The money never materialised and the broker became uncontactable.

PC Lawrie said another tactic scammers used was fake celebrity endorsements.

"We see a lot of people defrauded by people pretending to be Martin Lewis or Elon Musk," she said.

The force said fraudsters used AI-generated images and videos of social media personalities or influential figures to persuade people to make investments.

PC Lawrie advised to people to seek independent financial advice before investing.

She said people could also check to see if the company is registered with the Financial Conduct Authority's (FCA) scam smart online investment checker.