iSpoof, a website offering phone spoofing tech to fraudsters, swindlers and con artists, has been shut down.
In a previous article, we warned of the danger posed by iSpoof, a piece of software which allowed criminals the ability to mimic the telephone number and caller IDs of banks and other trusted services. This criminal software was reportedly used to trick thousands of people out of more than £100 million.
Police in Britain began investigating the site in June 2021 and were part of a global operation, along with Dutch law enforcement, to take down ispoof.cc – a website described as ‘an online fraud shop’.
In April 2023, the founder of the multi-million-pound fraud operation – Tejay Fletcher, aged 35 – pleaded guilty to four charges of fraud.
Under the scheme, fraudsters impersonated the likes of Barclays, Lloyds, Halifax, Santander, HSBC, First Direct, NatWest, Nationwide and TSB, gathering banking details and stealing from victims. Fletcher admitted charges of encouraging or assisting the commission of an offence, supplying an article to use in fraud, possessing criminal property and transferring criminal property.
For his crimes, Fletcher has been sentenced to over 13 years in prison. Judge Sally Cahill KC commented that “the late expression of remorse is regret for being caught rather than empathy for your victims.”
Those affected by his scam will no doubt feel relieved that his operation has been shut down and will no longer be able to target victims.
The cost of iSpoof
Millions of individuals worldwide were devastated as a result of the iSpoof scheme. According to Action Fraud, 4,785 people in the UK fell victim to an iSpoof scam, losing an average of £10,000. One victim lost a staggering £3m.
Targeted individuals will have worked all their lives to amass their savings and as a result of the scam they been left worrying if they can ever financially recover from their heart-breaking ordeal.
CEL Solicitors have helped hundreds of people who’ve lost money in bank impersonation scams to get their money back. We never ask for money upfront and work on a no-win, no-fee basis so there is nothing to lose by speaking to one of our professional advisors. Call on 0808 273 0900 or apply online and a friendly member of our team will be in touch for more details.
Please find below websites where you can find out more information on scams and scam prevention:
Action Fraud
To Report Scams, advice on prevention, types of scams and help
Click Link Action Fraud
Which
Consumer rights – help, news and advice re scams.
Click Link Scam – Which? Consumer Rights – Which?
Take Five-Stop Fraud
Advice on scams and scam prevention
Click Link Take Five – To Stop Fraud | To Stop Fraud (takefive-stopfraud.org.uk)
