Debtors ‘at risk’ of work-from-home scams

Unemployed people and others looking for extra work may find that they are faced with potential debt problems as a result of work-from-home cons.

According to the Office of Fair Trading’s (OFT’s) Scams Awareness Month campaign, such schemes are ways in which swindlers can trick money out of people by offering them ‘profitable’ business deals and advice on how to start up a company.

In the last 12 months, 17 per cent of UK adults have been contacted in this way, while one in four have, over the course of their lifetimes, been targeted at least once.

Senior director of the OFT’s consumer group Heather Clayton noted that such cases of fraud appear to be on the increase.

“People who are struggling financially may be particularly vulnerable to these types of scams,” she said.

The organisation recently noted that on and offline fraud is a growing problem, with one person in 11 being affected by scams and almost a third of those losing money.

By Sarah Adie