Scam Secrets
Scam Secrets is a BBC Radio 4 podcast that exposes the tactics used by fraudsters to steal money. Hosted by BBC fraud investigator Shari Vahl, along with criminologist Dr. Elisabeth Carter and former criminal Alex Wood, each episode dissects a different scam using first-hand accounts, forensic analysis, and secret recordings of scammers. The goal is to help listeners recognize red flags before falling victim.
Episodes
Mobile Handset Fraud
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 the
The Power of Your Email
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, the
How to Help Someone Who's Being Scammed
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 -
QR Code Scams
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
Inside Report Fraud
What really happens when you report a scam?In this special episode, Shari takes a trip behind the scenes at the fraud reporting service for England, Wales and Northern Ireland.For years, this was called Action Fraud - and victims often complained about the way they were dealt with when they tried to report what had happened to them.Since the start of the year, there's been a new system in place. I
The Customer Complaints Scam
Have you ever been desperately trying to contact a company to complain about shoddy service? Or needed to cut through the automated responses and speak to a human who can help? Most of us have - and the criminals have latched onto it.Scam Secrets takes a journey into the world of customer service scams. Criminals pose on social media as respected brands, going out of their way to help. They'll eve
How To Spot A Deepfake
Scam Secrets is back with a close look at deepfakes. Lots of the stories we hear involve victims being lured into scams by fake videos or photos of trusted people. Shari Vahl, Dr Lis Carter and Alex Wood hear what happened when a listener confronted the man stealing from her mother during a live video call where he was pretending to be her lover. YouTube scam-baiter Jim Browning joins the programm
The Instagram Takeover Scam
An old friend is posting about how well his investments are doing - and he's offering you the chance to get involved too. Would you know what to do?In this final episode of the series, the Scam Secrets team unpick a fraud which ripped through a group of close mates. One by one, their Instagram accounts were infiltrated as, believing they were chatting to a friend, they handed over their login deta
The Knock at the Door
A roofer's at your door - they've spotted a couple of loose tiles and they can fix them straight away. It's only a quick job. Would you know what to do?Almost all of the scams we've dissected so far have been done remotely - on the phone, by text or online. But what if the criminal is standing right in front of you - perhaps even inside your home? That's what the Scam Secrets team are looking at i
The Trial Shift Scam
A group of young jobseekers are gathered outside a dental surgery in West London, nervously waiting for a trial shift for the job they've just applied for. But as time ticks on, they realise there is no shift. In fact there is no job. But it gets much worse - their identities have all been stolen. Shari Vahl and the Scam Secrets team hear from one of those people, Joe. For him, the real impact of
The Customer Service Returns Scam
If you buy from a website that turns out to be fake and run by criminals, your first thought is probably about the money you've parted with. But that's not all they're after. Because you're also handing over personal data that can be far more lucrative than whatever you paid for the rubbish clothes that you're left with.In this episode, Shari Vahl, Dr Lis Carter and Alex Wood revisit the Great Kni
The Podcast Scam
You've been invited onto a well-known podcast (not this one). They'll even pay you to take part. Would you know what to do?Shari Vahl, Alex Wood and Dr Lis Carter unravel an elaborate scam that's aimed at people and organisations with a big social following. They hear from a dog groomer who was tricked into handing over her Facebook account by an extremely convincing-sounding invitation to appear
The Booking.com Scam
You've booked a holiday and the hotel gets in touch to ask for a payment to confirm your booking. They know your name and they've got all the details of your reservation. Would you know what to do? In this episode, people using booking.com are targeted by a hard-to-spot scam where official-looking messages arrive, asking for payment. Needless to say, that payment doesn't go to the hotel. But how d
Behind the Fake Profiles
Whether we're chatting, texting, buying or dating, the tech services we all use are being abused by criminals to worm their way into our lives. So what are these huge businesses doing to keep us safe?In this episode of Scam Secrets recorded at the United Nations Global Fraud Summit in Vienna, some of the biggest names in consumer tech chat to Shari Vahl, Dr Lis Carter and Alex Wood about the threa
Following the Trail
A message pops up. It's a scam, you can spot that. But who sent it? Where in the world did it come from? And how has it ended up in your inbox? For this special episode of Scam Secrets, the team visit the United Nations Global Fraud Summit in Vienna. Pretty much everyone engaged in the world fight against scams is there too, from politicians and police to the biggest tech companies on the planet.
Please Call Me
Scam Secrets is back with a close look at a disturbing and emerging scam technique that can totally clean out its victims.In a hybrid scam - or pig butchering, as the criminals describe it - the manipulation reaches new levels as investment and romance scams are combined. Shari Vahl, criminal language expert Dr Lis Carter and former fraudster Alex Wood hear from Catherine, whose father was targete
Could You Grab Me Some Gift Cards?
It's coming up to Christmas, and you might have gift cards on your mind. The perfect present choice for many scenarios - but also the perfect weapon for criminals.
In 2023, Action Fraud got more than 6,000 crime reports about gift cards. More than £13 million was stolen.So what turns these versatile gifts into gold dust for criminals? That's what Shari Vahl, Elisabeth Carter and Alex Wood will be
The WhatsApp Takeover
WhatsApp is part of our daily lives – and criminals know how to weaponise that trust.In this episode, Shari Vahl and the team hear how a devastatingly simple trick handed the keys for a Scam Secrets listener's WhatsApp account to a scammer. Along with expert linguist Dr Elisabeth Carter and former criminal Alex Wood, Shari finds out what the hacker did next - and how an old friend was tricked into
We've Noticed Your CV
You might be on the lookout for work - so when a message arrives with a job offer, the timing is perfect. This is what happens to the people who are drawn in by the fake recruitment text scam that has been bombarding people's phones.Shari Vahl, Dr Elisabeth Carter and Alex Wood hear how one man was lured in with promises of payment for simple tasks - then trapped in a cycle of payments and false e
How Do I Get My Money Back?
You've just been scammed. The red flags didn't work this time and criminals have stolen your money. Your mind's all over the place. Will you ever see that cash again? In this special episode of Scam Secrets, Shari Vahl and a cast of experts walk you through the process so you know your rights. She'll point out the factors that improve your chances of a refund - as well as the dreaded circumstances
The Winter Fuel Text
You've probably got the scam Winter Fuel Payment text at least once. You might well have ignored it. But what happens when the criminals hit the jackpot, the circumstances fit, and you try to take up the offer?That's what happened to Peggy - and in this episode her experience is analysed by Scam Secrets regulars Shari Vahl, Dr Lis Carter and Alex Wood.With the help of a convincing but very fake we
The Police Are On The Phone
A phone call from the police out of the blue. You want to help. Who wouldn't?Scam Secrets returns with the chilling story of an audacious scam that reached all the way to the doorstep of its victims. Jane and Neville were so convinced they were part of a police operation that they handed over their life savings - more than £670,000 - to criminals behind a scam known as courier fraud.Fraud investig
We're Coming For Your Furniture
Getting an unexpected phonecall can be unnerving. If it's from a bailiff saying he's coming to take your possessions and is 40 minutes away, it can be terrifying.In this episode, Shari Vahl and the Scam Secrets team hear from two people who were subjected to this scarily plausible scam. Linguistics expert Dr Lis Carter and former fraudster Alex Wood pick apart the language used, and explain how th
Hello Mum? I Can't Hear You
Your phone pings - it's a loved one who needs your help. Would you know what to do?Lots of us have received the 'Hello Mum' text - sometimes it's dead easy to spot. But what if the circumstances fit, and they catch you completely unawares?In this episode, Shari Vahl, Alex Wood, and Dr Elisabeth Carter discuss how the scam, which preys on parental instinct and urgency, is getting increasingly cunni
Would You Like This Piano?
Who could resist the offer of a free grand piano? Or a remarkably cheap campervan? Just as long as you pay for delivery - but that's a small price to pay, right?This episode of Scam Secrets is about those times when you're offered something - perhaps something you've always fancied - on amazingly good terms. It's a scam - otherwise Shari Vahl, Dr Lis Carter and Alex Wood wouldn't be talking about
Investment Scam: The Crypto Coach
A trusted celeb seems to be promoting a crypto investment. Would you know what to do?In this episode of Scam Secrets, Shari Vahl, Dr Elisabeth Carter and former criminal Alex Wood hear how an apparent endorsement from a trusted celebrity paved the way for the relentless psychological manipulation of a couple, with devastating consequences.The team discuss how helpless people can even be made to li
Fake Company In Your House
A letter arrives at your home - addressed to a company you've never heard of. Would you know what to do?Criminals are registering companies at innocent people's addresses at a shocking scale - sometimes covering an entire street at a time. In this episode, Shari Vahl, Dr Elisabeth Carter and former fraudster Alex Wood find out the alarming consequences if your home is targeted - and how to fight b
The Great Knitted Cardigan Scam
You've spotted a nice cardigan on social media - the website looks legit. So you buy one. It doesn't feel like a scam...In this episode, Shari Vahl and the Scam Secrets regulars - Dr Lis Carter and Alex Wood - unravel a global scam that relies on people buying pieces of clothing they've seen advertised on social media. As the team find out, what arrives is very much not what they've been hoping fo
Dating Fraud: Don't Worry, I'm Rich
You've met someone online. You chat every night and it's going well - but then they need your help. Would you know what to do?Romance fraud cost people more than £400m last year - and that's just the cases that were reported.In this episode, BBC reporter Shari Vahl, criminologist Dr Elisabeth Carter and former scammer Alex Wood dissect the harrowing story of a woman who sent £80,000 to a man she b
'I'm Calling from Your Bank'
Your bank is on the phone. The man knows all your details. He says there's a problem on your account. Would you know what to do?Scam Secrets is the new series lifting the lid on the techniques criminals use to steal your money.BBC reporter Shari Vahl is joined by criminologist and forensic linguist Dr Elisabeth Carter and former scammer Alex Wood to get inside the mind of the criminals and highlig
Introducing… Scam Secrets
Criminals will try anything to steal your money - but if you know their techniques, you can see the scams coming.
In this series, BBC fraud reporter Shari Vahl analyses some of the most shocking scams she's covered, dissecting how they work piece-by-piece. To do this, she's joined by the criminologist and forensic linguist Dr Elisabeth Carter, and Alex Wood - a former criminal who stole millions
