The Yorkshire Building Society branch in Commercial Way is to host an event to mark Government-backed Take Five Week, which helps people protect themselves from preventable financial fraud.

It will be from 9am on Wednesday, 14 May, and aims to educate people on financial fraud and scams, how they can protect themselves, and what to do if they are misled by scammers.

It is open to members of the public as well as Yorkshire Building Society customers and will include advice on how to spot common types of financial scams. Participants will also be directed to information and tools to help keep them and their money safe.

Research from Yorkshire Building Society suggests that almost three-fifths (56%) of UK adults have experienced some form of scam, with online scams being the most common (56%), followed by phishing attacks (55%), and identity theft (20%).

Whilst those aged 55-plus were the most likely to have been targeted by an online scam (60%), younger people aged 18-34 were the most likely to be deceived by a scam.

Those who report losing money to a scam said they lost an average of £344, rising to £420 amongst those aged 18–34.

Hannah Bingle, financial crime awareness specialist at Yorkshire Building Society, said: “We’re delighted to get behind Take Five Week with this event in Woking. Most people have come into contact with a financial scam at some point in their lives, and fraudsters are using many different techniques to try and get to people’s information and money.

“By hosting our fraud and scams awareness session, we hope to reach as many people as possible to help them understand more about this issue and help them protect themselves against scams and financial fraud.”

For more information on protecting yourself from fraud, visit www.ybs.co.uk/security or www.takefive-stopfraud.org.uk