Alert for firms: fake FCA communications

Search our list of the fake FCA communications we’re aware of, and find out how to check whether a communication you’ve received from us is genuine.

Scammers may attempt to trick your firm into revealing important information by pretending to work for the FCA. They might reach out to you via email, phone or post with convincing communications that appear genuine.

While we do have measures in place to try and prevent certain scams, it’s important to check the communications you receive from us. Particularly if it’s unexpected.

The communications listed on this page are only the ones we’re aware of. So, if you think you’ve been contacted by a fraudster, please report it to us. It could prevent others falling victim to a scam.

Fake FCA emails

We send emails from addresses ending in:  

  • @fca.org.uk 
  • @fcanewsletters.org.uk 
  • @fcamail.org.uk 

But we've received reports of fake emails from the following domains. You should always delete suspicious emails without opening them. 

Fake emails Details Date
@gabriel-FCA.org.uk    

@opbas.net
@opbas.uk 

   
@fca-eu.com    
[email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected] This email asks people to complete a survey on our conduct rules and coronavirus.  
[email protected] A fake email sent to firms regarding a due diligence request. This email is a clone address. Don’t open the link to the questionnaire in the email. November 2020
rdc-fca.com
rdc-fca.org.uk
Fake emails claiming to be from RegData (data collection platform) February 2021
@fca.com Fake email about firm details attestations submissions. Emails are being spoofed so falsely appear to come from this address. January 2022
@secure-fca.org.uk Potential scam email to firms using this email address. July 2022
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
These email addresses don't match any FCA employees, but are actually being sent by [email protected] or [email protected]. The top 3 subject lines in these fake emails are, 'Project Loan', 'Project Seking', and 'Project Seking Loan'. July 2022

@crs-department.com
[email protected]
[email protected] 

Fake emails, letters and phone calls fraudulently claiming to be from OPBAS or from OPBAS employees asking for money. Other examples claim to be from other organisations asking for money on behalf of OPBAS. May 2023

Fake letters

  • We’ve been made aware of a fake letter claiming to be from the FCA and HMRC asking for tax return money. The letter uses the FCA and HMRC logo (May 2023).
  • We've received reports of a fake letter from an FCA director. The letter claims to relate to a review by the FCA of the 'Star Like project' (September 2022).
  • Look out for fake FCA certificates using our name and logo.

Our websites

Fraudsters may create copies of our websites and change the information.

These cloned websites can be very convincing, with links and contact information that are the same as (or similar to) the real thing.

Our genuine websites and online systems have addresses that start with:

Be aware that some fake versions of our website have only small changes in the domain name. For example, 'register-fca.org.uk' instead of the genuine website 'register.fca.org.uk'.

Our social media accounts

We own a number of social media accounts that we use to share our messages with firms and professionals.

The main accounts we use include:

We also use TikTok and Instagram for campaigns activity and ads from time to time.

If you see another social media account claiming to represent us, it’s probably a scam.

Report a fake FCA communication

If you're worried about a potential scam or you think your firm may have been targeted by a fraudster, report it to us. Call us on 0300 500 0597 or use our contact form.

Page updates

: Information added Under fake emails and fake letters,
: Editorial amendment Page update as part of the website refresh