Weekly Fraud Update from West Mercia Police - Economic Crime Unit - 28/07/2026

PAYMENT IN ADVANCE SCAMS

Payment in Advance Fraud, also known as Advance Fee Fraud or Upfront Payment Fraud is still active and something to be aware of. Basically, this is when a criminal gets in in contact via email, text, social media or phone and persuades you to pay an upfront fee for services or goods which never appear.

The commonest types of Payment in Advance Scams are:

>Goods and services

>Job applications

>Loans

>Prizes and Lotteries

>Delivery Fees

How can you protect yourself?

And finally, never click on any links in suspicious messages and report scam texts and emails as shown in the details below.

Please feel free to share these messages with any vulnerable friends, relatives, or neighbours

If you have fallen for a fraud, 

Report it to Report Fraud (formerly known as ACTION FRAUD) on 0300 123 2040 or via reportfraud.police.uk

Scam Text messages can be forwarded to 7726 to help phone providers take early action and block numbers that generate spam on their networks. You can also report Scam mobile calls by texting 7726 with the word “Call” followed by the fraudulent caller’s phone number.

Forward Fake Emails received toreport@phishing.gov.uk

If you think your bank account or personal banking details have been used fraudulently, then use the short phone number - 159 - to contact the Fraud Prevention Department of most major 

UK banks.