MP warns of financial scam

Upper Bann MP David Simpson has urged people to be aware of an attempted financial scam in which criminals falsely claim to be representing the Paypal, the online payment company.

Speaking after an unsuccessful attempt was made by thieves to gain access to his details David Simpson said: “There have been numerous attempted scams that people have used to try to gain access to the banking details of individuals in recent times.”

“In this particular scam criminals are sending out emails purporting to come from the Paypal customer services department. The claim is made that they trying to update records and that they providing a web link to allow the individual to do so.”

He added: “The purpose of this web link is to enable thieves to insert a spy programme into the victim’s computer so that they can detect their account details and thereby fraudulently withdraw money.”

“In this instance my staff spotted the fraudulent nature of this immediately and reported it to the PSNI. However there will be many people who have Paypal accounts who might fall victim to this approach.”

Mr Simpson concluded: “I would urge people to be especially careful when opening any email that relates to their financial records.

"A bank or other financial group will not send emails to you asking you for details like PIN numbers, passwords or other personal data, no matter how genuine the email looks. Do not be tempted to fill out any pages and respond.”