Beware a SCAM MoneySavingExpert lookalike website – it's nothing to do with us or Martin Lewis

Sadly, fake adverts featuring Martin are everywhere – Martin was the most commonly used identity (44%) in all scam ads reported to Action Fraud (now Report Fraud) in 2024, followed by businessman Elon Musk (40%) and TV presenter Jeremy Clarkson (8%).

And just a couple of weeks ago, Martin let loose on politicians over 10 years of scam-ad inaction, saying the following on ITV's This Morning: "I've sued. I've lobbied. I've cried at hideous cases of vulnerable people losing everything. Why has nothing been done?".

Martin doesn't do ads or endorsements – and he HASN'T backed this

This latest scam page (shown below) looks like a convincing copy of MSE at first glance, with an almost identical header and layout, plus lookalike colours and fonts.

However, the page contains several false claims and images, including a fabricated image of Martin supposedly 'meeting' with Elon Musk and businessman Bill Gates, along with a deepfake video of Martin seemingly 'encouraging' people to sign up to a sham 'Quantum AI' investment scheme that promises sky-high returns.

We're working to get the clone site shut down, but if you see it anywhere online in the meantime, don't touch it – it ISN'T affiliated with Martin or MSE.

How to protect yourself against online scams

Below are a few of the key ways to spot and avoid scams – though do also read our guide on 20 ways to stop scams, which includes tips on suspicious calls, social media and more:

• Always check the website address (URL). Don't trust a page just because it looks like a familiar site. Get into the habit of checking the address in the bar at the top or bottom of your web browser. This can help establish if something is legitimate or dodgy. In the case of this scam site, even though many details look the same as MSE, the website address is completely different.
  
  Pages on our site will ALWAYS include the exact phrase "moneysavingexpert.com" – even when using services like Credit Club or our Compare+ tools.

• Sounds too good to be true? It probably is. Please don't dismiss this as a cliché. In this specific scam site, you'll see payout promises to the tune of £45,000 a month (after investing just £200). That really is the definition of too good to be true.

• Look out for vulnerable people. Based on the emails we see from MoneySavers, scammers often appear to target older people and those less familiar with online scams. So if you know people who could be more susceptible, especially if they follow Martin or MSE, take a moment to warn them about these scams and that Martin doesn't do adverts.

• Remember: videos, images and comments can now be very convincingly faked. So while it might feel slightly dystopian, don't immediately assume something you watch or read is real – especially if you're encouraged to part with money.

We've long campaigned against scam ads

Martin and MSE have long advocated against scam ads. In fact, Martin sued Facebook himself in 2018, in a landmark campaigning defamation lawsuit after 1,000s of scam adverts appeared on the social media site abusing his name or image.

The lawsuit was settled in 2019 after Facebook agreed with Martin on a major two-pronged action plan to fight the problem: that it would donate £3 million to set up a new anti-scams project and create a scam ads reporting tool supported by a dedicated team, unique to Facebook in the UK. However, we've seen little progress overall in quelling scam ads since that settlement.

More recently, in May this year, Martin wrote to Prime Minister Keir Starmer to ask, 'Why have you done nothing to tackle scam ads?'. In the letter, Martin called on the Government to instruct Ofcom – the regulator responsible for enforcing the Online Safety Act – to speed up its work and start taking action against platforms that host scams as soon as possible.