NEWS
Investments
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Published on June 19, 2024
The AMF, the policeman of financial markets, and that of banks, the ACPR, have listed the main financial scams which are rampant at the moment. And provided a certain number of tips to protect yourself as best as possible from all these fraudulent investment offers. Always keep in mind before responding to an email, an SMS or any other commercial request.
1. Booklet and credit scams
These scams are exploding, warn the Financial Markets Authority (AMF) and the Prudential Control and Resolution Authority (ACPR), the two financial supervisory authorities. Victims are lured via false advertisements for bank accounts at particularly attractive interest rates (around 8%). The fake promotions invite the consumer to go to a fake site imitating the sites of Boursorama, Revolut, Barclays, etc., to open a personal account and transfer a minimum amount by providing their bank details. The money will be transferred… to a scammer’s account. According to the joint insurance/banking/savings division of the AMF and the ACPR, the financial damage is particularly significant. They reach, on average, €97,000 for passbook scams and €12,000 for false credits or false credit redemption proposals.
2. Investing in Forex or cryptocurrencies
At the same time, fraudulent investment offers in Forex or cryptocurrencies continue. Individuals are encouraged to invest on unauthorized trading platforms (purchase/resale of foreign currencies or cryptocurrencies). Articles purportedly from major national daily newspapers or fake celebrity interviews tout “ideal solutions to get rich quickly”. Here too, the amounts stolen can reach several tens of thousands of euros per victim.
3. The false green investment
We are also increasingly observing the development of false green investments. These green funds have apparent characteristics close to the real ones (name, advertising, rates, list of green activities financed, etc.). Individuals can even, in certain cases, be called back by a fake financial investment advisor (CIF) who will detail the attractions of the investment.
4. The bank advisor scam
Fake bank advisor scams are also in a good position. If you receive an email or SMS supposedly from your bank branch (alert for a false transaction or commercial proposal), you must now think before responding, including if the SMS appears in your usual communication thread with the bank. Scammers are increasingly succeeding in stealing identities on social networks, and even hacking the telephone numbers of bank advisors.
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How to protect yourself from financial scams
Check email address
Go directly to the site, particularly for large companies, banks, administrations, etc., to check that the email address of the email received is identical to that displayed on the site.
Call!
If you are contacted by telephone, take control again. Write down the name of the person you are talking to and their company so you can call them back later, under one pretext or another. If it is a large company or institution, the official contact details will quickly appear in a search engine. Otherwise, it is imperative to obtain information about the company. Check, in particular, that it is authorized to offer financial investments in France by following the recommendations of the AMF. In case of serious doubt, it is better to seek advice (for example from your customer advisor, your notary, etc.).
Some banking services do not call
This is in particular the case of the interbank opposition server or the opposition centers of the different banks. It is exceptional for them to contact individuals by outgoing call. Anyone presenting themselves under this identity is a priori suspect.
Never rush
It is never urgent to lose €10,000 or more. You have to take the time to find out, make comparisons with other financial products, etc.
Never invest in products without understanding how they work
In particular, it is necessary to be able to precisely identify the companies financed.
