Scam Secrets
It might look like a perfectly ordinary message. It could come from someone you thought you trusted. Or it could be a phone call that catches you off guard. Whatever the method, the goal is the same.
- Indexed episodes, last 90 days
- 8
- Latest publication
- Sep 24, 2026
- Audience
- Checking…
- Earliest in this view
- Aug 6, 2026
Latest episodes
The 'Money Back' Scam (opens the original)
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Being scammed once can be a devastating, life-changing experience. But the criminals we hear about on Scam Secrets don't care about that. They'll often come back for more, with bogus offers to help you get your money back. It's known as recovery fraud, and its impact can be worse than the original crime. Often the criminals will be the same ones that stole your money in the first place. More than £200 million was stolen like this last year, according to Report Fraud. Sometimes it'll be an offici
Mobile Handset Fraud (opens the original)
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Being sent a shiny new phone when you weren't expecting one sounds great - but it most likely isn't. In this episode, the Scam Secrets team investigate mobile handset fraud - a widespread scam whereby criminals gain access to your telecoms account, then order new phones or tablets once inside. Shari Vahl, Elisabeth Carter and Alex Wood hear from two listeners who thought they were dealing with their mobile provider, only to find out they'd become the latest victims of this manipulative scam. The
The Power of Your Email (opens the original)
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What's the name of your first pet? If a question like that holds the key to your email inbox, it might be time to beef up your security. In this episode, Shari Vahl, Dr Lis Carter and Alex Wood talk about why our emails are so valuable to scammers, and hear some of the terrible things criminals will do if they can get inside. From booking a holiday to intercepting the proceeds of a house sale, they've got plenty of options. The team is also joined by Ollie Whitehouse, chief technology officer fo
How to Help Someone Who's Being Scammed (opens the original)
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Your relative is in the grip of a scam. You can see it - but they can't. Would you know what to do? It's a situation you never want to find yourself in. And if you do, it can be hard knowing where to turn and how to help. This episode is inspired by the emails we've received from people whose friends and relatives are being scammed. With the help of two experts who deal with this question every day - one from a bank, the other from the police - Shari, Lis and Alex set out to offer listeners a 't
QR Code Scams (opens the original)
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Do you scan QR codes? Since Covid, they've become embedded in many aspects of our lives. But perhaps we're a bit too trusting of them. On this episode, Shari Vahl, Dr Lis Carter and Alex Wood hear how criminals are finding different ways to exploit those little black and white squares. Two Scam Secrets listeners give their experience - Les, who scanned a QR code while trying to pay for parking on a trip to the coast - and Keith, who used a QR scanner app he'd downloaded to try to buy a classic c
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