Nationwide has launched a new 'Call Checker' feature within its banking app to help customers verify they are speaking to a genuine bank employee, not a fraudster. The six-word alert, which displays either “You’re on a call with Alex” or “You’re not on a call with us,” aims to combat impersonation scams that cost millions each year.
The building society’s research reveals the average Brit receives eight scam calls a month, with 57% of people believing suspicious calls are becoming more frequent. Impersonation scams account for 17% of reported scams at Nationwide, disproportionately affecting those over 65 (55%), though younger adults are also vulnerable: 44% of 25-34-year-olds have received a scam call.
Call Checker complements Nationwide’s existing Scam Checker service, used by 100,000 people and preventing £300,000 in losses per month. The new feature allows customers to instantly confirm call authenticity via the app, providing peace of mind during high-pressure situations.
Industry experts have welcomed the move. Rohit Parmar-Mistry, founder of AI and security firm Pattrn Data, praised Nationwide but criticised telecoms providers for failing to tackle the problem. “While scammers are innovating at lightspeed, using AI to clone voices, telecoms providers seem stuck in the analogue age,” he said.
Nationwide’s data shows fraudsters use increasingly bold tactics: 50% ask for personal details, 34% request security codes, and 15% tell victims to lie to their bank. Despite this, only 29% of suspicious call recipients report the incident to their bank, and 17% do nothing.
Jim Winters, Director of Economic Crime at Nationwide, said: “Scammers are becoming more sophisticated… Our Call Checker feature gives our customers peace of mind by confirming if a call is genuine. It’s a simple and effective step that could prevent someone from becoming the next crime statistic.”
