Barclays 'safe account' request — almost fell for it
Posting as a warning. Got a call this morning, very professional, claiming to be Barclays fraud team. Caller knew my name, last four digits of my card, and the date of my last transaction. Asked me to move the balance to a 'safe account in my name' while they investigated.
I was halfway through setting up the new payee when something pinged — Barclays does not move money for you, and no UK bank has a 'safe account'. I hung up, dialled 159, and the real Barclays fraud team confirmed: scam, and they had three other reports of the same script in the previous hour.
What tipped them off about me apparently was a small data breach two weeks earlier — the scammer had enough info to sound legitimate. Be careful out there.
2 replies
- WCL EditorialEditor3 days ago
Glad you caught it. This is the textbook 'safe account' / Authorised Push Payment (APP) script — see our bank scam calls UK for the four current variants and red flags.
The 'we know your card details' hook is the big lever — but those details often come from old breaches (see haveibeenpwned.com). Just because the caller knows them does not mean they are who they claim.
- Priya R.2 days ago
Same thing happened to my mum last week with Lloyds. She's 78 and they spent 40 minutes on the phone with her. She didn't transfer anything in the end but it was close. We've put a £100/day transfer limit on her account now.
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