Alert for firms: fake FCA communications

Scammers may attempt to trick your firm into revealing important information by pretending to work for the FCA. They may reach out to you via email, phone or post, and use the name of an FCA employee to make you think the communication is genuine.

While we do have measures in place to try and prevent certain scams, it’s important to check the communications you receive from us. Particularly if it’s unexpected.

Fake FCA emails

We send emails from addresses ending in:

• @fca.org.uk

But we've received reports of fake emails from the following domains. You should always delete suspicious emails without opening them.

OPBAS emails

Emails from the Office for Professional Body Anti-Money Laundering Supervision (OPBAS) will only come from an fca.org.uk email address.

Fake FCA texts

We've received reports of scam text messages claiming to be from the FCA:

• These messages may warn of a data breach and include an 0800 number to call.
• If you call the number, you may be asked to share bank account details.

Some of these texts are designed to look like they come from the same sender we use for MyFCA one-time passcodes to login to your account.

Remember:

• Genuine MyFCA authentication messages will not include an 0800 number.
• We will never ask for your bank details, PINs or passwords.

If you receive a message like this, do not respond or share any information.

Fake letters

• We’ve received reports of fake letters claiming to be from Sarah Pritchard, our deputy chief executive, and referencing a fake FCA employee. The letter mentions a supervisory review in relation to a bank and includes a fake FCA phone number (March and April 2026).
• We’ve been made aware of a fake letter claiming to be from the FCA and HMRC asking for tax return money. The letter uses the FCA and HMRC logo (May 2023).
• We've received reports of a fake letter from an FCA director. The letter claims to relate to a review by the FCA of the 'Star Like project' (September 2022).
• Look out for fake FCA certificates using our name and logo.

Our websites

Fraudsters may create copies of our websites and change the information.

These cloned websites can be very convincing, with links and contact information that are the same as (or similar to) the real thing.

Our genuine websites and online systems have addresses that start with:

• https://landmark-phase.live/%3Cspan class="print-footnote">[2]
• https://register.fca.org.uk/s/[3]
• https://www.handbook.fca.org.uk/[4]
• https://connect.fca.org.uk/[5]
• https://mutuals.fca.org.uk/[6]
• https://marketsecurities.fca.org.uk/[7]
• https://regdata.fca.org.uk/[8]
• https://fees.fca.org.uk[9]
• https://fca.wd3.myworkdayjobs.com/FCA_Careers[10]
• https://societyportal.fca.org.uk/account/login[11]
• https://data.fca.org.uk/[12]
• https://myfca.fca.org.uk[13]

Be aware that some fake versions of our website have only small changes in the domain name. For example, 'register-fca.org.uk' instead of the genuine website 'register.fca.org.uk'.

Our social media accounts

We own a number of social media accounts that we use to share information.

The main accounts we use include:

• LinkedIn www.linkedin.com/company/financial-conduct-authority[14]
• X twitter.com/TheFCA[15], twitter.com/FCACymru[16] 
• YouTube www.youtube.com/user/TheFCAtv[17] 
• Instagram @financial.conduct.authority[18]

We also use TikTok, Snapchat and Reddit for campaigns activity and adverts from time to time. If you see another social media account claiming to represent us, it’s probably a scam.

Report a fake FCA communication

If you're worried about a potential scam or you think your firm may have been targeted by a fraudster, report it to us. Call us on 0300 500 0597 or use our contact form[19].