Sir Richard Branson, billionnaire founder of the Virgin group, knows a thing or two about success.
Trusted Household Name
Both his name and brand are trusted and very well-known. Unfortunately, this has led to them being used by fraudsters to steal personal and financial information. These tricksters know that using a familiar name lends “credibility” to their attempts to defraud. People respond to communication from a household name or brand. Especially if it’s one they follow on social media – the contact doesn’t seem to be out-of-the-blue then. This is the tactic used by scammers who are contacting people who post on Virgin’s social feeds.
But Branson insists that he never direct messages anyone. And neither does his team.
Fraud Awareness
He has become so concerned about online fraud that he has got stuck in to raise public awareness of the issues. To help people spot the signs of online scams, Richard Branson’s Virgin has released this animated video. It catalogues some of the ways in which his name, face and brand have been abused to try to defraud people. And it suggests what you can do to avoid falling for the scams.
At under 2 minutes long, it’s worth a watch.
Why not share it with colleagues and friends too?
As you can see, scammers use a variety of methods to try to hook in their victims. This makes it vital to stay alert, and constantly be questioning online communications of any kind.
Report Fraud
If you become aware of a scam or see anything suspicious, report it, Richard Branson urges. Virgin have even set up their own reporting portal. However, they (and we) also recommend reporting anything dubious to Action Fraud, the UK’s national fraud reporting service.
Need more help?
If you’d like further advice on anything to do with security online, feel free to give datamills a call on 0114 287 0510. We can help you work out how to keep your personal and financial information secure.