Important information to help you identify fraudulent emails and protect yourself from online fraud targeting legal clients.
⚖ SRA Regulated No. 450129
🔒Client ProtectionYour security matters
📞 Suspect an email? Call 0800 214 216
Important: We will never change our bank account details during the course of your transaction. If you receive an email claiming we have changed our bank details, do not act on it — call us immediately on 0800 214 216.
We are aware that clients of solicitors firms are increasingly targeted by online criminals. This notice is intended to help you identify fraudulent emails purporting to come from Curtis Legal, and to tell you what to do if you receive one.
Please read this notice carefully and share it with anyone else involved in your matter — particularly if you are dealing with a property transaction or an estate where funds will be transferred.
What Is Email Fraud?
Email fraud — sometimes called phishing or conveyancing fraud — involves criminals sending emails that appear to come from a legitimate source, such as your solicitor, in order to trick you into transferring money to a fraudulent bank account or disclosing confidential information.
These emails can be highly convincing. Fraudsters may use email addresses that look very similar to genuine ones (differing by a single character), may have access to information about your matter, and may use professional language and branding. Do not assume an email is genuine simply because it looks official.
The Most Common Scam — Bank Account Fraud
The most prevalent fraud targeting legal clients involves emails claiming that a solicitor’s bank details have changed, and asking you to send funds to a new account. Once money is transferred to a fraudulent account it is extremely difficult to recover.
Curtis Legal will never change our bank account details during the course of your matter. If you receive any communication — by email, letter, or telephone — claiming that our bank details have changed, treat it as fraudulent and contact us immediately using the contact details you were given at the start of your matter, or those shown on our website.
How to Identify a Genuine Email from Curtis Legal
All legitimate emails from Curtis Legal will come from an address ending in @curtislegal.co.uk. If you receive an email purporting to be from us from any other domain — however similar it may look — it is not from us.
Common signs of a fraudulent email include:
- An email address that does not end in @curtislegal.co.uk — for example curtislegal.co.uk.com, curtslegal.co.uk, or similar variations
- Requests to transfer money to a new or different bank account
- Urgent language pressuring you to act quickly without checking
- Requests for personal information such as passwords, PINs, or account numbers
- Links to websites that do not belong to curtislegal.co.uk
- Poor spelling or grammar (though sophisticated fraudsters may not make such errors)
- Requests to keep the communication confidential from others
If you are ever in any doubt about an email you have received, do not click any links, do not transfer any money, and do not reply. Instead, call us directly on 0800 214 216 to verify the communication.
Our Email Security Practices
We take the security of our client communications seriously. Our practices include:
- We will always confirm bank details verbally before any transfer of funds is requested
- We will never ask you to transfer money to a new account without prior verbal confirmation
- We will not send unsolicited emails or cold call you
- We are bound by SRA regulations that prohibit unsolicited marketing to members of the public
- We will always be willing to confirm our identity and the details of your matter over the telephone
What to Do If You Receive a Suspicious Email
If you receive any email that you suspect may be fraudulent and purports to come from Curtis Legal, please take the following steps:
- Do not click any links contained in the email
- Do not reply to the email or provide any information
- Do not transfer any money based on instructions in the email
- Contact us immediately by telephone on 0800 214 216 or by emailing [email protected]
- Report the email to Action Fraud at actionfraud.police.uk or by calling 0300 123 2040
- Forward the suspicious email to [email protected] — the National Cyber Security Centre’s reporting service
Reporting suspicious emails to us helps us warn other clients and take steps to prevent further fraud. Please do not hesitate to get in touch if you are concerned about any communication you have received.
If You Have Already Transferred Money
If you believe you have transferred money to a fraudulent account, you must act immediately:
- Contact your bank immediately — ask them to recall the payment
- Contact us on 0800 214 216
- Report the fraud to Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040
- Report to the police if you believe a crime has been committed
Speed is critical. Banks have a better chance of recovering funds if they are notified quickly. Do not delay in contacting your bank even if it is outside normal business hours — most banks operate 24-hour fraud lines.
Further Information and Resources
Further guidance on email fraud and scams targeting legal clients is available from:
- Solicitors Regulation Authority — Scams and Fraud
- Action Fraud — National Fraud and Cybercrime Reporting Centre
- National Cyber Security Centre — Phishing Guidance
- CIFAS — UK’s Fraud Prevention Service
Contact Curtis Legal
If you have any concerns about the security of communications you have received from us, or if you wish to verify any aspect of your matter, please do not hesitate to contact us directly:
- Telephone: 0800 214 216 (Freephone)
- Email: [email protected]
- Post: Curtis Legal Limited, The Alder Suite, Mamhilad Park Estate, Torfaen, NP4 0HZ
- Office hours: Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 5:00pm
Suspect Fraud?0800 214 216
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