A West Lothian woman has told of her confusion as she received a text from a UK-wide bank warning her of a recent payment on her card - despite her not holding an account with them.
The anonymous reader got in contact with Edinburgh Live this morning to discuss the mixed feelings she had about this scam - as she might have spotted the obvious fraud, but others may not be so sure.
Speaking to Edinburgh Live , the 22-year-old said: "When I first saw the text I did panic - as anyone would do when they see 'fraud alert' in block capitals.
READ MORE - Police in West Lothian issue appeal for information on antisocial bikers
"Then I stopped to think for five seconds and my brain caught up with my panic - I don't even bank with Santander!
"The text was very convincing, and even contained the number for a random freephone number, which when I looked it up, is a scam for not only Santander but AirBnb as well.
"I contacted Santander and reported the scam to them, as did many others I saw had replied in a forum online.
"I just want to warn others as this is a very simple thing that others who are not as familiar with scams might not recognise, and may be cheated out of their own money.
"I'm just glad they targeted me, and not someone like an older relative, as I don't think one of my grandparents would have noticed this scam, and thought it was genuine. It's a different generation, I guess."
The text reads: "SANTANDER FRAUD ALERT: We have held a recent payment on your account for 372.60 GBP - REF: *****. Please call Fraud now on 08001026139 for further assistance."
When researching this number online, the notes that come up for WhoCalledMe.Uk read: "This number was provided in a text message (apparently Santander), asking me to call if I didn’t recognise a credit card that had just been attempted. It said it was the fraud department. It just looked very suspicious and I flagged it to the bank as a scam."
Another wrote: "Text message allegedly from Santander saying one time pass code for Airbnb with number to phone if not requested the code I tried calling from house phone and it said you had to call from your registered phone and have bank info ready. Searched number and saw that others had same message."
On Santander's website, this is what they had to say about fraudulent texts: "While fraud and scams are not new, advances in technology give criminals more ways to attempt to access your money.
"Getting to know the techniques they use can help you protect yourself and your money.
"Examples of fraud would be having your card skimmed, identity theft and computer malware which steals your details. In these cases, you're not aware of what the criminals are doing and haven't given your authorisation.
"Examples of scams would be where a criminal attempts to convince you to send them money, give away access to your bank details or launder money.
"Scams actively involve you as the account owner and work though engineering a situation to make you believe it’s genuine, so you give your authorisation.
"If you think you've responded to a scam or been a victim of fraud, contact us straight away."
