A dad is warning others to beware after he was left “penniless” in a new “number spoofing” bank scam that saw him hand over thousands of pounds to fraudsters.
Arbroath man Rhys Tapley, 31, was ripped off after a scammer mirrored the Royal Bank of Scotland’s general inquiries line and told him his account was compromised.
Dad-of-two Rhys could see it was a “genuine” RBS number and the scammer had detailed knowledge about recent bank transactions.
But he was left with just £140 to live on after he transferred £3,100 to the scammer.
Rhys, an oil rig floor hand, has called on the banks to do more to stop scammers after being left without Christmas money to spend on his daughter and son, aged nine and four.
RBS has confirmed it is working with telecoms providers to stop what it calls “spoofing” – where fraudsters can make a call as though it came from the bank.
Rhys said: “It’s such a terrible thing to go through at this time of year. I’ve been left with virtually nothing.”
He added: “Because they’ve conned me into handing over my own money myself, there isn’t a lot I can do.”
He said he has since been told that he will not get his money back because it has already been transferred out of the account it was put in.
An RBS spokesperson said: “We would remind our customers that they should never make a payment or divulge full security credentials at the request of someone over the phone.”
