Broadband customers urged to be wary of 'poor speed' scammers

Broadband users throughout the UK have been warned to be wary of a scam that sees scammers falsely claiming to be able to improve their home internet speeds.

Victims are contacted by phone by individuals claiming to be from "BT Openreach" who say they have detected poor broadband speeds in their area, the Sun reports.

I had a call this morning from an lady saying she was from BT Openreach and they had detected very slow broadband speeds. I binned her off at as we aren't with BT. It's a scam, they try and get you online so they can attack your computer. Like the old Microsoft one #ScamAlert

— Aidan Stones (@AidanStones) January 29, 2019

They then offer to help fix the problem by telling victims to log on to their computer and instruct them to download software to improve their speeds. This, in fact, will deliver viruses or keylogger tools that can record sensitive passwords and send it back to the hackers.

The first sign that users are being called by scammers should be if they introduce themselves as being from 'BT Openreach', as the infrastructure provider Openreach is now a distinct entity from internet provider BT, with the two operating as entirely separate companies.

@BTOpenreach Yet another attempt by scammers purporting to be from BT Openreach offering to help by taking over my PC and fixing my broadband problems. If you want to call them back on 0161 832 4308 be my guest.

— Paul 'Bruce' Haden (@PaulBruceHaden) January 26, 2019

Openreach has also been responding to some of those who have warned about the scam on social media, saying: "Openreach would never contact you directly, nor would we ask for personal details or remote access to your router."

It advised anyone who has received a call to hang up immediately and to report the incident to ActionFraud.