Public Warning – Devonhirst Investments Limited
This notice is issued by the Isle of Man Financial Services Authority (“the Authority”) in accordance with the powers conferred upon it under Section 30 of the Financial Services Act 2008.
Warning of suspected bogus website
www.devonhirstinvestments.com (“the website”)
The Authority has become aware of a website, www.devonhirstinvestments.com purporting to represent the business Devonhirst Investments Limited and claiming to have an Isle of Man presence at 7 Athol Street, Douglas, Isle of Man IM1 1LD. The website purports to offer a wide range of financial products.
The Authority wishes to draw attention to the following observations:
The Authority has failed to establish any association between the website and any genuine Isle of Man companies or businesses.
Those operating the potentially fraudulent website have no authority to claim that they operate in or from the address, 7 Athol Street, Douglas, Isle of Man IM1 1LD as far as we can ascertain they are not known to anyone genuinely associated to that address.
We are aware that there is a genuine Isle of Man company named Devonhirst Investments Limited but we are content that this genuine Isle of Man company is in no way linked to the potentially fraudulent website devonhirstinvestments.com and the genuine company’s details have been cloned to give the aforementioned website some credibility.
To offer the financial services and products mentioned within the website in or from the Isle of Man, would require them to be licensed by the Authority. Devonhirst Investments Limited is not licensed with the Authority to offer the range of financial products on the website. A list of all entities licensed or registered by the Authority can be found at:
https://www.iomfsa.im/register-search/
Under the circumstances, the Authority is concerned that any person who has accessed the website may potentially become the victim of fraud or it may be an attempt at gaining personal data from the browser in order to steal their identity.
General advice on how to avoid becoming a victim of identity theft and advanced fee frauds can be found on the Action Fraud website at http://www.actionfraud.police.uk/ID and http://www.actionfraud.police.uk/fraud-az-advance-fee-fraud respectively.
Any persons who are already involved in any dealings with the potentially fraudulent website should consider notifying their local Police, bringing to their attention the contents of this notice.
Anyone with general concerns concerning any individual or company holding themselves out as conducting a regulated activity in or from the Isle of Man without the requisite licence should contact the Enforcement Division at the Authority on +44 1624 689311 or by e-mail to enforcement@iomfsa.im for advice.
Authority Reference: NR/04/2023