Victims of investment fraud lost an eye-watering £879.8 million in 2025, data from the City of London Police revealed. According to the figures, which were released in April 2026, an average of £2.4 million was lost every day in the UK through investment scams.
Sadly, as criminals become more sophisticated, more investors could be falling victim to fraud. Figures from the City of London Police show that nearly a third (31%) more Britons reported investment fraud during 2025 than the year before.
Perhaps the most effective way to protect yourself is to increase your awareness of the different types of scams being operated. As World Password Day falls on Thursday 7 May, which promotes the use of strong and robust passwords to protect your data and wealth, this week we will be publishing a series of blogs aimed at keeping you and your money safe.
To kick off, we’re looking at some of the most common types of scams, and how to protect your finances from them.
1. Phishing
These are emails, calls, texts and letters that scammers use to trick people into disclosing sensitive and personal information, which is then used to steal from you.
Fraudsters may also pretend to be a company you have dealt with, or someone close to you. They may claim you have an outstanding debt, or ask for financial help in the hope you accept it at face value and pay the amount requested.
Another common phishing attempt is to send an email or text message asking you to call a number to secure a bank account or claim a tax refund, or prize. If you receive any message like this, you should be extremely wary.
Often, the best approach is to contact the company, organisation or person directly and check whether the message is genuine.
2. Vishing
These are phone scams in which criminals attempt to obtain personal or financial information from you, or demand money. It’s important to remember that some fraudsters spoof genuine phone numbers so that it looks as if you're talking to someone representing an official organisation, such as HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC), your bank or the police.
Increasingly, scammers use automated voicemails that will tell you that you’re being taken to court over an unpaid debt. It will then provide contact details which will take you through to the fraudsters, who will attempt to take sensitive information and/or money.
If you receive a call or automated voicemail, do not respond. Instead, find the organisation’s genuine contact details on its website and speak to them directly.
3. Investment scam
Fraudsters offer bogus investment opportunities that they promote on social media and search engines. The advertising of bogus investments is why these scams have surged in recent years.
Typically, the investments offer extremely attractive investment returns yet are not so attractive that they appear ‘too good to be true’. For this reason, you should always be extremely cautious if you respond to an advert on social media and search engines.
Sometimes fraudsters persuade their victims to invest in a completely fictitious fund and then keep your money. In others, the scammer places your money into a high-risk fund that carries excessively high charges, meaning the criminal earns significant amounts in fees.
As the investment is high risk, there is a good chance your money will be lost.
It’s important to remember that criminals sometimes clone legitimate financial businesses and websites to feign authenticity. They may send out paperwork and promotional material with branding and logos that are very similar to the genuine company.
Always check the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) register for regulated firms and individuals to ensure they are genuine before investing your money.
4. Pension liberation scams
If you have a Defined Contribution (DC) pension, you can typically access it when you reach the Normal Minimum Pension Age (NMPA). This is currently age 55, rising to 57 from April 2028. However, some criminals may offer schemes they claim will release your pension cash early, using a pension liberation scheme.
Accessing your pension before reaching the NMPA is likely to result in significant tax charges, which could significantly reduce the value of your pension fund. Furthermore, fraudsters may charge extremely high fees of up to 30%, which would decrease the size of your pension pot even further.
Fraudsters sometimes offer free pension reviews, with the intention of recommending that you transfer your pension into high-risk funds, using the promise of higher returns. While this may sound attractive, what the scammers won’t tell you is that doing so is likely to reduce the value of your pension pot significantly.
Worse still, you could lose all of it. If you are offered a pension liberation scheme, or advised to transfer your retirement fund into a high-risk fund, you should end the conversation at once.
Remember, if you get a cold call about pensions it’s probably a scam, as cold calling is banned in the UK. For advice about your pension, always speak to a bona fide financial adviser as they will help you to understand the options and any risk that may be involved.
5. Impersonation scams
This is where someone approaches you using a fake name and credentials, attempting to extract money from you. They may claim to be from the police, HMRC or your bank, and could try to scare or intimidate you into taking the action they want you to.
This could be by saying ‘you'll be arrested if you don't …’, or by claiming you’ll lose money if you don’t do what they say. As with Vishing, fraudsters may spoof official contact details to appear genuine.
Be very wary if a courier attempts to collect any cards or cash. Contact the organisation directly using the contact details on its official website and, if necessary, call the police.
Actions you can take if a criminal makes contact
If you ever suspect you’ve been contacted by a scammer, end the conversation immediately.
If the call or text was received on an iPhone or Android phone, you can report it to your provider by texting ‘call’ to 7726. You’ll then receive a message asking you for the scam number.
For scam calls received on WhatsApp, you can report the contact by going to the number and tapping 'report contact' and 'block'. You can also report scam calls to Report Fraud (formerly called Action Fraud) or call the police on 101 if you’re in Scotland.
Get in touch
While we hope this blog offers some useful ways you can protect yourself from scammers, please remember that this is not a comprehensive list. If we can help with any questions you might have about investing, pensions or financial planning, please call us on 0333 010 0008 to arrange no obligation initial meeting with one of our independent financial advisers.
4 May 2026