Meet Savvy, a British red squirrel with an unusual mission. Backed by the government and the financial industry, the bushy-tailed mascot is helping to make investing feel ‘more normal, more visible and more relevant to everyday life’. And soon you’ll be seeing Savvy on TV too.
Encouraging more of us to invest is no bad thing, provided it’s done responsibly. Investments usually outperform cash savings over the long term, although they can fall in value and aren’t right for everyone.
The campaign’s upbeat message focuses on the potential benefits of investing. But it says far less about a growing threat facing people taking their first steps: scammers.
Investment fraud is already at record highs, and scammers are experts at using world events and government announcements to make themselves sound legitimate. As investing becomes more visible, fraudsters’ pool of potential victims will only continue to grow.
Here, Which? explains how investment scammers are targeting new investors, the warning signs to look out for and how to protect your money
‘I was scammed by Nigel Farage deep fake’
On Instagram recently, Kate (name changed), a retiree from Yorkshire, saw a video that appeared to show politician Nigel Farage on Question Time with host Fiona Bruce and Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey.
In the video, Farage accuses Bailey of not telling the public that they could earn millions investing. Bailey is shown storming off as the audience cheer and clap. Farage then gives out a phone number.
Kate has since come to understand that this interaction was fictional and AI-generated – a so-called ‘deepfake’ made to impersonate real people. But at the time, believing it to be genuine, she phoned the number, thinking: ‘Well, if it’s been in the public domain, I need to act on it quickly.’
Kate spoke to a man who said he was in Amsterdam. He asked whether she had ever invested before and she confirmed she hadn’t. He then said someone would call back.
Soon after this, she received a call from someone calling themselves ‘Daniel Neveraski’ from Munich who became her main contact at ‘KnightPips’, a website claiming to offer investment trading services.
He persuaded her to make an initial investment of £200 in currency trading, which she paid for using her credit card. The next day he said the Iran war meant that oil prices were going through the roof and he encouraged her to invest in oil.
He kept assuring her that KnightPips was regulated but warned that if she contacted her bank, it would probably say she shouldn’t be doing this.
She asked why KnightPips wasn’t registered with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and was told it couldn’t be as it traded in US dollars. She also submitted her driving licence, proof of address and a video selfie as part of what appeared to be standard identity checks.
She then tried to send a total of £17,000, but Daniel said he hadn’t received it. By this time doubts were creeping in, so Kate contacted her bank and was thankfully able to have the payments stopped.
She subsequently learned that Farage had not been on Question Time for more than a year.
Kate has since received more calls from various numbers trying to persuade her to invest more funds. She has asked for her £200 to be returned but has not received it. A recent caller claimed it was all gone due to a ‘poor investment’.
Although her overall loss is relatively small, she was plagued by the ongoing calls and emails, and must now remain vigilant to the possibility of identity fraud.
Our investigation into KnightPips
Looking into KnightPips, we found even more to concern us. The site was only registered in December last year. It claimed to operate via Apple and Android apps but nothing matching its name appeared in the Google Play Store, Samsung Galaxy Store or Apple’s App Store.
Of its reviews on Trustpilot, 80% were one star when we checked, with visible reviews either branding the firm a scam or reporting being bombarded with sales calls, or both.
However, not all of its negative reviews were visible as KnightPips had been routinely flagging them to Trustpilot, resulting in many of them being removed. While not exclusive to scams, we find this aggressive tactic is often used by scammers to prevent angry victims warning others off.
While we were investigating KnightPips, the FCA issued a warning saying the firm was acting without authorisation in the UK and advised consumers to avoid it.
We also reported KnightPips’ website to the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), which is responsible for helping to remove scam websites.
KnightPips did not respond to our request for comment, and its website went offline shortly after we contacted it.
We’ve also heard from a victim of another, apparently unconnected, investment scam that started with a similar deepfake video of Nigel Farage. In this case, the video was on YouTube and the victim connected with a ‘clone company’ impersonating a genuine UK financial firm.
These deepfake investment scams are common – in recent years they’ve used the AI images of former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, Martin Lewis, Elon Musk and Bear Grylls, among many others.
How common is investment fraud?
Investment fraudsters are enjoying a boom time.
Cases surged by 26% in 2025 compared with 2024, according to UK Finance. In the same period, the overall value of investment fraud soared 40% to reach £221.5m – its highest-level ever. This equates to an average loss of more than £14,800 per case.
These huge losses are part of what makes investment fraud particularly devastating for victims. They can represent lifetime savings and have a huge impact on milestones such as retirement or home ownership, as well as straining relationships with partners or relatives.
While investment scams may qualify for reimbursement under the UK’s authorised push payment (APP) scam rules, this is not guaranteed in every case. The protections only apply in certain circumstances, and some payments, including many international transfers and cryptocurrency transactions, fall outside the scheme.
Even when available, compensation is capped at £85,000, meaning some victims may still be left out of pocket.
- Find out more: 7 signs of an investment scam
How finfluencers can put your money at risk
At the same time there is a world of poor-quality advice instantly available on social media. Much of this falls short of being a scam but occupies a grey area sometimes known as ‘grifting’. This is when social media financial influencers (‘finfluencers’) sell so-called wealth-building courses claiming to teach you how to invest, or even promote investment products themselves – sometimes illegally, without FCA authorisation.
A study published in May by Queen Mary University of London found that 90% of the 2,500 finfluencer posts analysed by its researchers were of poor quality.
In 2025, we analysed eight examples of finfluencer content in detail with the help of a chartered financial planner, and found a spectrum of poor behaviour that included seriously misleading claims, unfounded predictions about the future and suspected unauthorised investment promotions.
Where to get trusted investment advice
For complex financial decisions, such as pensions, investments, inheritance planning or mortgages, it’s best to consult an FCA-regulated independent financial adviser (IFA) or chartered financial planner.
An independent financial adviser can recommend products from across the market rather than being restricted to a particular provider. You can use a comparison site such as unbiased.co.uk or vouchedfor.co.uk and filter the results based on expertise and customer reviews.
Charges will vary. With investments, it’s common to be charged a percentage of the investment. The average fee is 2.4%. For example, someone investing £10,000 could expect to pay around £240 in fees.
If you can’t afford an IFA, or for simpler financial decisions, impartial free guidance can be a good alternative. Instead of recommending a specific product, it gives you general information to help you narrow down your choices yourself.
MoneyHelper and Pension Wise (both at moneyhelper.org.uk) and Citizens Advice all provide guidance. Which? Money members can access one-to-one appointments with our money experts.
You may be tempted to ask AI your money questions, but our research found serious problems with answers given by chatbots and AI summaries.
Why regulated investments are usually safer
It’s easy to have your head turned by exotic-sounding schemes involving overseas property, cryptocurrency, gold bullion, fine art or whiskey casks.
These types of investment are not always scams, but they are inherently risky. That’s because they’re not regulated by the FCA.
Regulated firms and individuals must adhere to strict rules. You can complain to the Financial Ombudsman Service if you’re unhappy and your money is protected up to a maximum of £120,000 per person if a regulated company goes out of business, thanks to the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. But this protection does not cover losses caused by investments falling in value.
A stocks and shares Isa with a reputable authorised provider may sound drab in comparison to the more glamorous options above, but it is a far safer home for your money, will save you paying tax on your gains and over the long term is likely to offer superior returns to a savings account.
- Find out more: best stocks and share Isas 2026
How to spot an investment scam
Criminals don’t want you to take your time, get advice or do the right checks before investing. That’s why they often use the following tactics:
- Pressure to act quickly. Creating urgency is a common scam tactic. Don’t rush into making an investment.
- Promises of guaranteed or unusually high returns. Investments are never risk-free, so be sceptical of anyone guaranteeing you’ll make money.
- Being told to keep it secret. A genuine firm won’t stop you discussing an investment with your bank, family or a financial adviser.
- Unexpected contact. Cold calls, emails, texts or social media messages promoting investments are almost always a warning sign.
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