Rogue Trader Alert – Doorstep Cold Caller offering to clean gutters 

Our advice is:

• Never deal with cold callers looking to undertake work on or around your property
• Never agree to have work done by somebody who is ‘just passing’ or take their word that it needs to be done at all
• Never allow a cold caller access to your home, roof or garden even if they are offering to do tasks for a small fee or free
• Never pay for work before it is completed
• When looking to have work done on or around your property only deal with reputable companies you have researched and chosen yourself and have obtained a written quotation from before commencing the work

If you see cold callers operating in Norfolk please contact us through our partners the Citizens Advice consumer helpline on 0808 223 1133 or Police on 101. If you feel intimidated or are concerned for vulnerable neighbours call 999.

Information Alert – Home Repairs or Improvements? Make sure you #CHECK

• History – Ask for the traders’ references, recommendations and reviews and make sure you check them out
• Establish the details – What work will be carried out? When will it start? Who will be doing the work? How much will it cost? Remember that a quote is more binding than an estimate 
• Contract – Ensure everything is recorded and ask for a contract for the work
• Keep all the paperwork – This may be needed should anything go wrong .

We are highlighting a warning from Action Fraud about fraudsters targeting WhatsApp group chats after they received over 630 reports from victims so far this year.

The fraud often begins when a member of the group receives a WhatsApp audio call from the fraudster, pretending or claiming to be another member of the group. This is done to gain the individual’s trust, and often the scammer will use a false profile picture and/or display name, so at first glance it would appear to be a genuine member of the group.

The fraudster will tell the victim they are sending them a one-time passcode which will allow them to join an upcoming video call for group members. The criminal then asks the victim to share this passcode with them so they can be “registered” for the video call.

In reality, the criminal is asking for a registration code to register the victim’s WhatsApp account to a new device so they can take over their account.

Once the fraudster has access to the victim’s WhatsApp account, they will enable two-step verification which makes it impossible for the victim to regain access their account. Other members of the group, or friends and family in the victim’s contacts, will then be messaged asking them to transfer money urgently as they are in desperate need of help.

Action Fraud offer the following advice on how to secure your WhatsApp account:

• Set up two-step verification (2SV) to give an extra layer of protection to your account. Tap ‘Settings’, select ‘Account’, then ‘Two-step verification’ and ‘Enable’.
• CALL if a family member or friend makes an unusual request on WhatsApp, always call the person outside of WhatsApp to confirm their identity
• Report spam messages or block a sender within WhatsApp press and hold on the message bubble, select ‘Report’ and then follow the instructions

If you live in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and have been a victim of fraud or cybercrime, report it via the Action Fraud website or by calling 0300 123 2040

You can report suspected scams to us via our partners, the Citizens Advice consumer helpline on freephone 0808 223 1133.