Another day on planet earth, another group of scam artists pretending to be a big asset manager and steal people's money. On this occasion, the scammers in question are pretending to represent AllianceBernstein. A warning against the scammers was issued on Friday afternoon by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
The regulator says that people pretending to represent AllianceBernstein, calling themselves Bernstein Securities, have been contacting unsuspecting members of the great British public in an effort to steal funds from them.
These scammers have been using two websites to tempt people into handing over their cash. One of these now appears to be down, and the other may actually belong to AllianceBernstein. Finance Magnates contacted AllianceBernstein to confirm that the site listed is a fake but, at the time of publication, they could not do so.
Conversely, the asset manager did inform Finance Magnates that both the address and phone numbers listed by the scammers do not belong to them.
FCA to NYC
Comments on Telfinder, a website that lists phone numbers and allows users to comment on them, indicate that people have been cold-calling from the number listed and trying to get people to give them cash.
The address which, according to the FCA, the scammers have been using, is close to the Brooklyn Bridge in Manhattan, New York.
In the past, this author had the pleasure of visiting one scam artist's registered office. There was nothing there when I arrived apart from a frumpy looking woman who, having politely told me that the company I was looking for wasn't registered there, asked if I would be so kind as to leave so that she could pack up for the weekend.
Anyhizzle, my point is that the scam artists are probably not renting office space at an address that, if Google is to be trusted, costs up to $165,452 per month - that is, unless they have been running a very successful scam operation.
So if one of the many Bernsteins residing in New York City decides to give you a call this week - and it isn't your cousin Leon - then just hang up, the chances are they want to rip you off.
