Martin Lewis, the personal finance expert and founder of MoneySavingExpert, has expressed deep frustration over the persistent use of his identity in online scams, including deepfake videos that falsely show him endorsing investments. In a recent interview, Lewis revealed that an elderly woman with a disability lost her life savings after falling for a scam that used his name and image. 'They are bastards!' he wrote on social media, adding that he had 'tears running down my face' upon reading the victim's email.
Lewis, who never advertises any products, has seen his reputation weaponised by organised crime groups. According to research by Action Fraud, victims have reported losing over £20 million to scams featuring Lewis, making him the most impersonated celebrity in fraudulent adverts, ahead of Taylor Swift and Elon Musk. MoneySavingExpert now employs a full-time staff member to handle cases of identity theft related to these scams.
Despite his successful campaign for the Online Safety Act 2023, which was intended to hold tech companies accountable for scam adverts, Lewis says progress has been 'absolutely bugger all'. The government has delayed consultations on enforcing the act, with Ofcom now planning to start a 12-week consultation in July 2025, and final policy statements not expected until mid-2027 at the earliest. Lewis feels 'completely let down by the entire political classes'.
In May, Lewis co-signed an open letter to Prime Minister Keir Starmer with the chief executive of Which?, calling for action against tech platforms that profit from fraud. As of the interview, they had not received a reply. Lewis contrasted this with Starmer's swift response to AI-generated nude images of children, saying: 'If you [the tech companies] profit from fraud, you should be liable.' He described the ongoing battle as one he is losing, but vowed to continue campaigning.
