HSBC warns of rise in scammers pretending to be from the bank to steal money

The bank is urging people to never disclose One Time Passcodes (OTP) as the number of people being conned into sharing this information has risen 25% in the last six months

HSBC has issued a new fraud warning (

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HSBC has warned of a rising number of scammers that are duping customers out of security codes to access their money.

The bank is urging people to never disclose One Time Passcodes (OTP) as the number of people being conned into sharing this information has risen 25% in the last six months.

One Time Passcodes are sometimes issued by HSBC and other banks as a security check when making a purchase.

It involves sending the customer a code via text message to their phone, which the user then needs to enter online in order to complete a transaction.

However, fraudsters are calling customers pretending to be from the bank or a trusted organisation and requesting an OTP, which they can then use to make a fraudulent purchase.

Scammers are duping customers into sharing passcodes
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One HSBC customer, known only as Ms S, received a text that appeared to be from DPD who claimed they were trying to deliver a package.

Ms S clicked on the link within the text and was sent to a page that she felt looked legitimate.

It asked for her card number, sort code and account number which she was told to enter to pay a delivery fee.

Ms S then received a call from someone she thought was from HSBC, with this individual telling her they suspected her card was being used for fraudulent activity.

During the call she was asked to disclose a OTP code in order to recover her funds – not realising it wasn’t actually her bank she was speaking to.

Have you been caught out by this type of scam? Let us know: mirror.money.saving@mirror.co.uk

Another scam involved a customer called Mr M who received a text message that appeared to be from Royal Mail to arrange a redelivery.

It was similar to the scam involving the first customer, in that he was asked to click a link and enter his card details online.

Then just fifteen minutes later, Mr M received a call from someone who claimed to be from HSBC, again asking for their OTP code.

Around a third (37%) of total successful fraud attempts involved possible disclosure of OTPs last month (August) with a total of £363,300 at risk of getting into the hands of fraudsters.

June saw the highest number of suspected OTP scams with over £411,408 total attempted frauds.

David Callington, head of fraud at HSBC UK, said: “We’re aware that fraudsters are impersonating banks and trusted organisations and contacting customers regarding potential fraudulent transactions.

“Whilst we have an experienced team looking for signs of fraud, customers can help themselves by being aware of the tactics fraudsters use.

“HSBC UK or any other bank will never ask you to divulge any of your banking passwords. If someone calls you out of the blue and asks for your One Time Passcode, hang up straightaway, it’s a scam.”

How to avoid being scammed

HSBC has put out some tips to help you spot a scam.

The bank says frauds involving OTPs usually start out with a “smishing” text from what appears to be a legitimate organisation.

This message will request the recipient to input their personal details online.

If you suspect a text message might be dodgy, don’t reply to it or click on the link.

You should instead contact the organisation the message is supposedly from to check if they have actually tried to message you.

Check their contact details online from their genuine website, rather than calling any number in the suspect text message.

HSBC customers will receive a warning in the SMS message containing their OTP instructing them to never share the code, even with bank staff or police.

If in doubt, customers can choose to verify transactions in their HSBC app, instead of receiving an OTP via SMS.

HSBC has more tips on how to keep yourself safe from fraudsters on its website.