Holidaymakers warned £30 mistake can lead to 17 months of scam calls
People travelling on holiday to the US have been warned after Emmerdale star Lisa Riley revealed one mistake she made that resulted in her being placed in a ‘very vulnerable position’.
Speaking to Shelagh Fogarty on LBC, Riley explained that she had visiting the US Electronic Systems for Travel Authorization (ESTA) website the other year, which is part of the US Customs and Border Control process for international travellers when something went wrong.
According to Riley, the ESTA website looked ‘identical’ to the official service she had used for years and didn’t think anything of it when she began entering her passport, bank and personal details into its system.
ESTA applications typically cost around $40.27 per person, which is around 30 quid for us Brits.
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To complete the form, you need to access the official US Department of Homeland Security’s website or its app, and you even have to do this if your plan is to simply pass through the states.
It’s a simple process to complete, but unfortunately, fake websites are easy to miss.
When it came to Riley, she thought she was applying for a travel visa, but she had actually stumbled upon a fake site.
Scarily, she only realised her mistake when the confirmation did not arrive for her purchase.
Instead, she said she received a strange email, and now says she’s more vulnerable to future scams.
She explained: “I gave all my details, the passport number, my mum’s maiden name, and my bank details to pay for it.
She added: “Now all my details are out there… I am now in a vulnerable position for all these impersonators that go with the banks.”
“People feel silly…they’ve been put in a very vulnerable position,” she said. “And I’m one of those people.”
Having searched for the website online like usual, and clicked on the link that looked genuine, Riley found herself in the position of being known to scammers.
So, how do you prevent this from happening if you need to book your own visa, like Riley?
Because fraudsters are so good at concealing fake websites, instead of searching for the ESTA website, you can type it out in its entirety in the URL bar at the top of your screen - https://esta.cbp.dhs.gov/ - so you can be taken directly there.
The actress told This is Money: “I'd completed the process many times before, so there was nothing that immediately raised alarm bells. That's what frightened me most. The website looked completely legitimate and I genuinely believed I was doing the right thing.”
She added: “What that experience taught me is that criminals are incredibly clever and convincing. Once fraudsters have your personal information, it can be used in all sorts of ways and that's a frightening thought.
“It's made me much more cautious about any unexpected contact, whether that's online, by text, email or over the phone. I can absolutely see how people could be persuaded by someone claiming to be from their bank if they appear to know information about them.
“It has had a real impact on me and changed the way I behave online. I think people sometimes believe scams only happen to other people, but they can happen to anyone.”
Now, she says she is working with Nationwide to raise awareness of fraud, which found that 15 per cent of people had shared their personal information with someone they later learned was not genuine.
Riley has since urged people to be vigilant of things like unexpected messages, calls and online offers.
“Take your foot off the gas,” she said. “Presume it’s fake… if you feel doubtful, you’re right to feel doubtful.”
Britt Jones