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Gavin & Stacey Actor Melanie Walters Details 'Long-Game' Bank Scam She Nearly Fell For

She has begun online-safety outreach with BT Group alongside AbilityNet to help older people avoid similar frauds.

Overview

  • Walters says scammers first emailed about a supposed account‑security issue, then sent a letter from a different bank weeks later to make the ruse look unrelated.
  • The communications used her name, email and home address, which she says heightened their credibility.
  • She stopped short of entering details after noticing a form glitch, sought in‑person advice the next day, and bank staff confirmed both contacts were fraudulent, so she lost no money.
  • She describes a gap of about six weeks between the email and letter, calling it a deliberate long game to pressure her into sharing financial information.
  • BT Group‑cited research reports frequent targeting of older people, average losses of £1,059.40 per incident with 11% losing more than £3,000, and free BT–AbilityNet workshops and one‑to‑one support for over‑65s.