Your money – such as your savings and investments – is important to you. So fraudsters know they need to find ways to gain your trust in order to try to get their hands on it.
What fraudsters are doing
With interest rates currently so low, people are on the lookout for savings and investments that could give them a better return on their hard-earned money.
Fraudsters know this. So some have been creating websites for bonds which, at first glance, may look genuine and encourage you to provide your details.
They’ve also been setting up fake comparison-style sites to get your information and make themselves look legitimate when they contact you. As you've given your details voluntarily on these sites in the first place, you don't suspect a thing.
Once you visit these websites, they may email you to ask for your personal – and possibly financial – information. They may encourage you to set up bonds with them, which turn out to be fake. Because you think you’ve gone onto a real website, you may be likely to hand your information over willingly.
Some sites to be wary of
With these sorts of scams, fraudsters tend to use well-known brand names on the website because they know, this way, people are more likely to trust the site.
The sites we’ve found pretending to be part of our business usually include ‘Aviva’, along with some other words which relate to savings or investments.
Here are some examples of websites which have tried to contact customers claiming to be us, even though they have no links to us whatsoever:
- avivauk.com
- avivaltd.com
- avivainvestorholding.com
- avivainvestorsholding.com
- avivainvestorholdings.com
- avivainvestorsholdings.com
- avivainvestorholding.co.uk
- avivainvestorsholding.co.uk
- avivainvestorholdings.co.uk
- avivainvestorsholdings.co.uk
- avivaclientaccess.com
- avivaplcbonds.com
- avivafixedsavings.com
- uk-firm-aviva-bonds.best
- avivaprotectedbonds.com
- avivabonds.com
- avivabondsplc.com
- avivabondselect.com
There are also other warning signs you can look out for to help you spot fake websites:
- Images on the website – are the images and logos that appear blurry or low-quality?
- Writing on the website – does the website contain text which is poorly written and include spelling or grammatical errors?
- Missing contact details – is the website missing contact details, such as an email address or phone number?
- Broken links – are there links to other parts of the website which, when clicked on, take you to a blank page or don’t take you anywhere at all?
- Too good to be true – are there offers advertised on the website which look too good to be true (such as unreasonably high returns on an investment)?
These certainly aren’t full lists, but they show the trends being used that you need to be wary of.
We’re on the case
We know what fraudsters are doing and we’re working hard to take these websites – and the criminals behind them – down.
Unfortunately, as we take sites down, the fraudsters very quickly set new ones up. Therefore, it’s important that you stay vigilant and know what to look out for. For more on how to protect your money see spot fraud to stop fraud and how to avoid being scammed.
If you come across a website which includes ‘Aviva’ but suspect something’s not quite right, it’s best to trust your gut instinct. You can report it to us and we’ll investigate it right away.
How to be sure you’re on one of our websites
If you’re interested in our savings products, it’s best to go directly to aviva.ie or speak to a financial adviser.
