Denise Welch has shared a cautionary tale after being conned out of thousands, urging the public to be vigilant.
The 'Loose Women' panellist recounted her ordeal of being duped by a scammer posing as the Barclays fraud squad, which led to her losing £2,000 during a phone call she believed was legitimate.
Appearing on 'Good Morning Britain', Denise spoke with hosts Ranvir Singh and Ed Balls about the incident, aiming to raise awareness and prevent others from falling victim to similar scams.
- Read more: Martin Lewis issues warning over celebrity scams that saw one fan lose £500,000
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Denise offered a piece of advice for those concerned about potential fraud: "In my opinion, do not give your information to anybody unless you can somehow be 100% sure. Ring them back. Anybody that's calling you, even though you may have spoken to that person before, say, do you know something? You've called me."
Reflecting on the moment she was targeted, Denise said she was caught off guard while busy rehearsing for 'Calendar Girls: The Musical' and made a snap decision that she later regretted, reports the Mirror.
She continued: "It was a few years ago, it was pre pandemic, and I was rehearsing a show - Calendar Girls: The Musical. We weren't supposed to look at our phones or take personal phone calls. We all have a sneaky look. And there was Barclays."
A woman was conned into sharing her personal details after being convinced she was speaking to the fraud department of her bank, Barclays. She recounted the persuasive tactics used in their phone conversation: "I went out, took the phone call and they said, it's the fraud squad. They said there was some fraudulent activity going on with your card, and we want to put a stop to it. And I had absolutely zero doubt that I was talking to the fraud department from my bank because it had come up under the headline of Barclays that I had put into my phone."
She realised her error during the sequence of calls with the scammer and admitted it wasn't until the fifth call when she made the mistake.
During the conversation, she was fooled into giving away her sensitive information. She elaborated: "I was talking to this chap called Michael. I remember him, he was obviously very personable. And I went through, over a series of about four phone calls, all of the information you are duly expected to give. It was my full name, my date of birth, my address and postcode and my mother's maiden name - again, didn't hesitate because it said Barclays."
Describing her interactions further, she mentioned how the scam unfolded: "So over about four phone calls, Michael had become my best friend. He said it was taking a long time to do this because this was a fraud that was potentially going to be bigger than they thought. This is where anybody watching this will be shouting, well, that's on you. How stupid of you. They then said, on about the fifth phone call, we're going to have to ask for your four digit pin."
Although she knew better, the scammer's convincing act led her to share her pin. "Now, even I know that you don't give your pin away, but because I was talking to the fraud department at Barclays, I did. And the next day, I mentioned this to my husband, who went absolutely spare," she recollected.
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