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Fraudster is sentenced for ‘smishing’ scam
A fraudster from London, who went on luxury holidays abroad after harvesting details from thousands of bank customers, has been sentenced to two years and nine months in prison. Emanuel Poku, 24, from Enfield, London,
pleaded guilty to conspiring to defraud the UK telecommunications industry and UK banking industry, possession of an article used in fraud and possession of a false passport. He was sentenced to 33 months imprisonment at Inner London Crown Court on 20 September. Mr Poku also received additional prison sentences of 15 months and seven months, both to run concurrently. It follows a successful investigation by the Dedicated Card and Payment Crime Unit (DCPCU), a specialist police unit sponsored by the banking industry that targets the criminal gangs responsible for fraud. Mr Poku was found to have committed
£50,000 of fraud between January and April 2019 after tricking customers into giving away their financial and personal details by sending out thousands of ‘smishing’ text messages imitating banks and mobile phone companies. The messages contained links to fake websites that would ask unsuspecting victims to enter their personal information, which would then be used to commit fraud. The fraudster also used ‘sim swaps’ to complete fraudulent transfers and purchases on customers’ accounts. The fraud was spotted through collaborative
intelligence work between the DCPCU and mobile phone companies to identify criminals who are committing smishing and sim swap scams. All victims were fully refunded. Mr Poku was arrested on 1 April 2019
at his home address in London. A search of his property uncovered several counterfeit IDs and bank cards, over £12,000 in cash, dozens of sim cards, as well as laptops and mobile phones that had been used to commit fraud.
Detective Sergeant Ben Hobbs Dedicated Card and Payment Crime Unit
FCA set to act on motor finance rules
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has announced plans to ban the way in which some car retailers, and other brokers in the motor finance sector, receive commission. Currently, some motor-finance brokers
receive commission which is linked to the interest rate that customers pay. The broker can set that rate and the FCA found that the widespread use of this type of commission creates an incentive for brokers to act against customers’ interests. The FCA estimates the changes would save customers £165m a year. Preventing this type of commission would
remove the financial incentive for brokers to increase the interest rate that a customer pays and give lenders more control over the prices customers pay for their motor finance. Christopher Woolard, executive director
of strategy and competition, said: “We have seen evidence that customers are losing out due to the way in which some lenders are rewarding those who sell motor finance. By banning this type of commission, we believe we will see increased competition in the market which will save customers money.” The FCA is proposing to make changes to
the way in which customers are told about the commission they are paying to ensure that they receive more relevant information. These changes would apply to many types of credit brokers and not just those selling motor finance. The FCA is consulting on the new rules until 15 January 2020 and plans to publish final rules later in 2020. Meanwhile, the FCA has published a
feedback statement setting out its proposals to improve climate change disclosures by issuers and information to consumers on green financial products and services. The statement identifies priorities, which will provide a foundation for the FCA’s future work on climate change and green finance. These include issuers’ climate change
disclosures, regulated firms’ integration of climate change risk and opportunities into their decision-making and consumers’ access to green financial products and services. Andrew Bailey, chief executive, said: “We have an important role to play in creating an
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environment where firms can manage the risks from moving to a greener economy and capture the opportunities to benefit consumers. This Feedback Statement is the next step in our drive to provide clarity for firms and consumers about how our work will help support the response to the climate challenge and the development of the green finance market.” The Feedback Statement sets out the key
actions it will take in each of these areas: l Consulting on those new rules to improve climate-related disclosures made by certain firms and clarifying existing obligations. l Finalising those rule changes requiring Independent Governance Committees to oversee and report on firms’ environmental, social and governance and stewardship policies, as well as separate rule changes to facilitate investment in patient capital opportunities. l Publishing a feedback statement in response to a joint Discussion paper with the Financial Reporting Council on stewardship setting out actions to address the most significant barriers to effective stewardship l Clarifying its expectations around consumers’ access to green financial products and services and taking appropriate action to prevent consumers being misled The FCA will continue to contribute to
several collaborative initiatives, including the government-led cross-regulator taskforce on disclosures and the Climate Financial Risk Forum, which they established with the PRA earlier this year.
November 2019
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