Identity theft
Fraudsters can try to steal a person's identity to help them carry out scams.
Use this guide to help keep yours safe.
Your identity is unique to you. But if it falls into the wrong hands, it could cost you money.
Fraudsters can use all kinds of methods to find your personal or banking details.
If they get hold of them, they can try to use your bank account to steal your money. Or they could try to scam you at a later date.
Tips to help keep your identity safe
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Before you put anything on social media, think how it could be used against you. Fraudsters like to search profiles to find things they can use.
Your banking and personal details should be kept private and off social media. Even sharing them with friends could put them at risk.
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Fraudsters can send an email or text to try to steal your details.
Scam messages come out of the blue and pretend to be from a person or company you now. They're usually about money and often have a link to click or a number to call.
If you don’t know who sent an email or text, or you didn’t expect to get one, don’t reply until you’ve made sure it’s genuine. Call the sender on a number you trust, not one from a message.
To be safe, only click on a link if you know and trust the sender. The same can be said for a download.
A scam message wants you to click on a link or call and give away details. And a link or download could put a virus on your device.
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If a fraudster gets your details, they may try to scam you with a phone call.
Only a fraudster would call to tell you to move money to another account.
If you get a call like this, hang up.
You can always call a company to find out if it was genuine. But use a number you trust, not one from a call.
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Fraudsters can look all over the place to try to find personal or banking details. What you throw away could be gold to them.
To cut down on paper, get bank and credit statements online.
If you don’t want to go paper free, file your personal and banking details away. Or destroy them.
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If you lose a card or an important document, you need to cancel it right away.
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To find out if credit checks have been made in your name, sign up to a trusted credit agency. They can tell you about your rating and find out if anything odd has taken place.
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At first, it can be hard to tell if your identity has been stolen. But if you think it has, contact us right away and we’ll make sure your bank account is safe.
If a website you use gets broken into, contact them to find out if you’re details have been stolen. The site should let you know. But if they don't, contact them to find out.
If your details are stolen from a site, make sure your account hasn't been used. Even if everything is ok, change your passwords and security questions.
And if your details are on any other sites, tell them about the theft.
You can also contact Action Fraud to report a crime or get general advice. Action Fraud help banks and other companies combat fraud.
And register with CIFAS. They can help to protect you and stop fraudsters from using your details to apply for products or services in your name.
Tell-tale signs of identity theft
Keep an eye out for these things. They may warn you that your identity has been stolen and help to limit the damage.
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Check your bank or credit accounts to make sure you know what’s been paid in and out.
And look for any other changes you didn’t make.
If you spot anything odd, contact us right away.
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Letters may arrive that you know nothing about. Even credit cards that you didn’t apply for.
If you get unwanted mail, or think it has been stolen or re-directed, contact Royal Mail.
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Your credit score could be good, but you get turned down for credit.
Make sure you know all the items that show up on a credit check.
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You could get calls from debt collectors or companies about things you didn’t buy.
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You can get straight forward, impartial advice on how to avoid scams from Take Five.
You can report a crime or get general advice from Action Fraud. They help banks and other companies combat fraud.
They offer advice on how to keep yourself and your devices safe from fraud.
UK Finance is there to support customers and to help make sure it's safe to bank.
Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA)
The PRA is part of the Bank of England. Their role is to make sure banks act safely and reduce the chance of them losing money.
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)
The FCA is there to make sure banks work well so customers are protected and get a fair deal.
CIFAS can help to protect your identity. They can stop fraudsters from using your details to apply for things in your name.
This is a government site that gives advice on how to stay safe online.
This is part of the FCA site. You can use it to check on an investment or pension deals to help you avoid scams.
Lloyds Bank does not control the content of third party websites linked to on this page.
Lloyds Bank will never ask you to:
- Share your account details like user ID, password and memorable information.
- Tell us your Personal Security Number (PSN) for Telephone Banking.
- Tell us your PIN code or card expiry date.
- Move money to another account.
Important legal information
Lloyds Bank plc. Registered office: 25 Gresham Street, London EC2V 7HN. Registered in England and Wales No. 2065. Lloyds Bank plc is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority under registration number 119278.
Eligible deposits with us are protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS). We are covered by the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS).
Personalisation. We will always greet you personally using your Title and Surname. We will never use ‘Dear User’ or ‘Dear Valued Customer’. Where you hold an existing account with us, we will quote the last four digits of your account number, such as your current account, savings account or credit card. If you don’t yet have an account with us but we have your postal address details, we may use part of your postcode. Internet Banking-related emails may also include your Internet Banking User ID.
Links. All links within our emails will go to a page on www.lloydsbank.com, or to trusted Government regulatory websites (e.g. Financial Ombudsman, Financial Conduct Authority, etc). Research emails may take you to a partner research company website but you will not be asked for any Internet Banking log on details.
In fraudulent emails, website addresses may appear genuine on first sight, but if you hover your mouse over the link without clicking, it may reveal a different web address. On our genuine emails the link address always starts with email.lloydsbank.com or www.lloydsbank.com. We will never link direct through to our Internet Banking log on page or to a page that asks for your security or personal details.