The number of text scams has risen sharply during the pandemic
James Bore is a cyber-security expert. His company website details his MSc from Northumbria University and his experience in IT support, development and engineering. But, despite all his expertise, in May this year, the 38-year-old almost fell foul of a cyber scam. He woke one morning to a buzzing on his mobile: it was a text from Royal Mail telling him that the company had been unable to deliver a package, and that he should click a link to pay £2.99. Only then would Royal Mail deliver his parcel.
Bore groggily considered this request, before popping downstairs to see if there was a card from Royal Mail on the mat. ‘I was seconds away from losing a considerable amount of money,’ he says. ‘If a tiny suspicion hadn’t made me get out of bed, I’d have acted on it. But that’s how these guys work – they rely on a time when you aren’t thinking critically.’