North Wales Police Cyber Crime team issue warning about scam B&Q Father’s Day competition

Cyber crime police in North Wales have warned about a B&Q Father’s Day competition scam that appears to be doing the rounds.

There have been reports regarding suspicious WhatsApp messages in the run-up to Father’s Day, offering a chance to win a Weber BBQ as a present.

⚠️BEWARE⚠️

Scammers are sending fake Father’s Day competitions via WhatsApp

The text reads B&Q Father’s Day Contest 2022 and goes on to advertise 5,000 free gas barbeques. Do NOT click the link, report it to 7726 then BLOCK the number

Find out more here https://t.co/05Y4DdG96U pic.twitter.com/TszzWyovkG

— HGC Troseddau Seiber / NWP Cyber Crime (@NWPCyberCrime) June 12, 2022

The text reads “B&Q Father’s Day Contest 2022” and advertises “5,000 free gas barbeques available to be won by entering a competition by clicking on the link below.”

According to Malwarebytes Labs, “the barbeque bait arrives out of the blue, from a somebody who has your number, as a random message bringing word of a supposed B&Q Father’s Day Contest.”

“The message is plausible, and the only clue that something is amiss, other than it being unsolicited, is the Russian .ru domain name.”

This link will either phish for your bank details or put you in danger of having malware downloaded onto your device.

B&Q has issued a statement about the scam, in a post on Facebook the company said: “We’re aware of a fake message circulating via Whatsapp using B&Q branding in a Father’s Day competition.”

“If you receive a suspicious WhatsApp message, which could be from a known or unknown contact, about a B&Q Father’s Day Contest 2022 offering the chance to win a Weber BBQ, we strongly recommend that you delete the message, do not click on any links and do not share with your contacts.”

“We would never ask any of our customers to provide their full home address in order to enter a competition.”

“If you believe you have been the victim of this scam, please consider reporting it to Action Fraud.”

North Wales Police Cyber Crime Team has said: “Do NOT click the link, report it to 7726 then BLOCK the number”

You can also report fraud or cybercrime to Action Fraud any time of the day or night using the Action Fraud online reporting tool.