Fraud alert – scam WhatsApp messages ‘from Thorntons’

What’s the scam?

Thorntons is the latest law firm to be imitated by fraudsters on WhatsApp in order to attempt to scam people out of money for pretend services.

Fraudsters are contacting people via WhatsApp claiming to be a person called 'Dona' from Thorntons Immigration Team. The messages pretend to be about arranging a sponsored job as a Health and Care Worker in the UK, and ask recipients to send copies of their passports and CVs, and pay a service charge of £680.

The WhatsApp phone number currently being used in this scam is +44 7300 106570. The picture associated with the scam WhatsApp account is a photo taken when Thorntons opened its Glasgow office in 2019. 'Dona' claims that she and her team are based in the current Glasgow office and provides the correct address.

However, Thorntons does not conduct business through WhatsApp and will never contact clients in this way.

What should you do?

Please do not respond to anyone claiming to be Thorntons via WhatsApp. Please do not provide any personal information to such messages or pay any invoices.

If you have received what you suspect is on online scam, such as a WhatsApp message, or where a fraud or scam has taken place, you should report this directly to Police Scotland. Find out more about reporting online crime in Scotland here.

When working with a solicitor or law firm, it is important to carry out due diligence and check the authenticity of correspondence you receive. You can find the contact details for all practising Scottish solicitors using our Find A Solicitor tool.