‘Fake bank app allowed scammers to shake my hand and steal from me’

A man who lost £1,000 worth of tools after being scammed by a fake banking app has said it makes you “lose faith in humanity”.

The apps mimic legitimate mobile banking platforms and allow fraudsters to fake bank transfers in person, show the seller a “successful payment” message and then walk away, leaving sellers thousands of pounds out of pocket.

Dr Tim Day, lead in doorstep crime and scams for the Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI), described the apps as an “emerging threat.” He added: “The in-person nature of this scam is unusual.”

Victim Anthony Rudd said: “I found it absolutely sickening that you could look someone in the eye, shake their hand, and then rob them.”

About 500 reports of crimes involving fake banking apps have been made to Action Fraud in the past three years.

Some of these apps were available on the Google Play store in the past but were removed. Google said the “safety and security of users is our top priority”.

Now, BBC West Investigations have found versions of the apps available elsewhere online which can be downloaded directly to Android phones without the use of an official app store.

Mechanic Mr Rudd was selling more than £1,000 worth of power tools on a social media platform when he received a message from a profile named Liam Wright.

When “Mr Wright” said he was interested in viewing them, Mr Rudd invited him to come to his workshop in Salisbury, Wiltshire.

After the man arrived, he checked over the tools, offered a bank transfer and opened what appeared to be a banking app.

“He handed his phone over to me and I typed in my account details, clicked send, and it came up with a successful payment notification,” Mr Rudd said.

“It looked absolutely genuine.”

While Mr Rudd was waiting for the money to appear in his bank account, he turned his back to pick up accessories to hand over as part of the sale.

The scammer used this opportunity to leave with all the tools, but the money never arrived in Mr Rudd’s bank account.

“He came into my workplace and took my tools,” Mr Rudd said.

“It angered me so much that someone could be so brazen, but it’s also embarrassing that I allowed this to happen.”

Mr Rudd resigned from his job because he said the scam had “a huge impact” on his mental health.

“You lose faith in humanity, that someone could be that low,” he said.

Wiltshire Police told Mr Rudd it will not be taking any further action as it has been unable to identify the suspect since the incident on 11 February.

It was a similar story for John Reddock, from Liverpool.

He was selling a gold bracelet in the hope he could use the money to take his two children on holiday to Spain.

He also used a social media platform to advertise the item, which he listed for £2,000.

“I was trying to do something nice for my kids and it backfired on me,” said Mr Reddock.

Two men arrived at his house to view the bracelet and decided they were happy to go ahead with the purchase, offering a bank transfer.

Mr Reddock told them his bank account details and one of them typed it into what appeared to be a banking app on their phone.

It then showed a payment successful notification.

They left with the bracelet but Mr Reddock never received the money.

“It’s given me nightmares and sleepless nights. I’m disgusted about what they’ve done to me,” he said.

“It’s made me really angry because I was trying to do something good for my kids, and they came to my property to steal from me.”

Mr Reddock reported the incident to the police but no further action was taken.

BBC West Investigations found the fake banking apps – which we are not naming so as not to promote them – are available to download onto an Android phone directly from the internet.

Dr Day said: “So much of fraud is now happening online that it’s easy to drop our guards when dealing with people in person.

“It gives us a false sense of security but fraud and scams are just as likely to happen in this space.”

Dr Day said it also shows how scams are becoming “more complex and sophisticated”.

“The amount of money which is available as a result of fraud is so huge and the relative levels of enforcement possible means it’s a crime type which is attracting more and more professional criminals,” he added.

He said that tech companies need to be “more engaged” in driving out fraud on online platforms.

UK Finance represents more than 300 firms in the UK’s banking and financial industry. A spokesperson said the fake banking app scam is “a concern” and they gave the following safety advice:

• Do not be pressured into accepting payment by bank transfer
• Never hand over goods unless you are sure you have received the money and check your own bank account to see if the payment has arrived
• Check if the buyer has a newly registered profile before you meet them as this may mean they are not who they say they are

More information about staying safe from scams can be found here.

But this is of little comfort to Sebastian Liberek, who runs his business Seb’s Repairs in Gloucester.

He sells and repairs phones, tablets and computers and has been targeted by fraudsters – who walked directly into his shop – using fake banking apps on three occasions in recent months.

He said he has lost hundreds of pounds to a bank transfer faked by a customer.

“It makes you feel angry and vulnerable,” Mr Liberek said.

“When you’ve spent 15 years building a business and someone can chip at it and take pieces away without consequences.”

Mr Liberek has now installed extra security measures such as CCTV to protect his business from future attempts.

“The fact it’s happened three times, it will probably happen a fourth time,” he said.

“There’s nowhere to go, you cannot find them, you can report them to police, but chances of anything being done about it are fairly slim.

“It’s a situation without answer, or ending.”

A government spokesperson said they were taking “ambitious steps to tackle the evolving threat of fraud”.

“In the coming months, we will set out further details including plans to strengthen international cooperation, introduce better protections against AI-enabled fraud, and increase collaboration between government and the private sector,” they added.

Get our flagship newsletter with all the headlines you need to start the day. Sign up here.