Every year, the DGCCRF and Signal Conso (signalconso.gouv.fr) receive hundreds of thousands of phone scam reports. The TelCheck community flags new fraudulent schemes every week. Here is a rundown of the 15 most common phone scams in France in 2026.
1. Fake bank adviser
An individual claiming to be your adviser reports fraud on your account, uses some of your personal data, and asks you to validate a "security transfer" or share an SMS code. That code authorises a real fraudulent transfer. Golden rule: hang up and call your bank on its official number.
2. Ping call (one-ring scam)
Your phone rings once from an exotic foreign number (+222 Mauritania, +678 Vanuatu), then stops. The aim is to get you to call back a premium-rate service. Never call back an unknown foreign number that rang only once.
3. CPF training scam
A caller offers to use your CPF for a fictitious course, asks for your Mon Compte Formation login, then drains your balance. More than €43 million was diverted this way in 2025 (Caisse des Dépôts data). Never share your Mon Compte Formation credentials over the phone.
4. Fake energy supplier
A supposed adviser from EDF, Engie or TotalEnergies asks for your PDL number and IBAN, then initiates an unsolicited supplier switch. Door-to-door energy contract canvassing has been banned in France since 2022.
5. Fake parcel delivery (smishing)
An SMS or call says a parcel is held and requests customs or redelivery fees. Legitimate carriers (La Poste, Chronopost, DHL, UPS) never request bank details by phone.
6. AI voice cloning
AI tools can clone a loved one's voice from a few seconds of audio. You receive a call sounding exactly like your child in distress, urgently requesting a bank transfer. Establish a secret family code word for emergencies.
7. Fake tech support (Microsoft / Apple)
A browser pop-up or unsolicited call warns your computer is infected and asks you to install remote-access software. Neither Microsoft nor Apple will ever call you spontaneously about a device problem.
8. Fake CPAM agent
A caller claims to be from French health insurance to update your carte Vitale or refund an overpayment, asking for bank details. The CPAM never asks for a bank account number over the phone — use ameli.fr directly.
9 to 15. Other common scams
- Crypto investment: fake advisers pitch spectacular returns on fraudulent platforms. Check any platform against the AMF blacklist at abusifs.amf-france.org.
- Vishing (voice phishing): spoofed bank number plus a fraudulent pretext to obtain your credentials or validate transactions.
- Fake prize or contest: a prize is ready but you must pay administrative fees first. A legal contest never requires upfront payment (DGCCRF rule).
- Fake police officer: caller asks you to withdraw cash or transfer to a "secure account". The police never ask this over the phone.
- Fake tax or benefit refund: a refund is ready but your bank details need "verification". Tax services communicate only via impots.gouv.fr.
- Fake supplementary health insurance: canvasser collects your health and banking data, then disappears.
- Local number spoofing: a number with your local prefix is displayed to seem familiar. Always check unknown numbers on TelCheck regardless of prefix, and report suspicious calls on Signal Conso (signalconso.gouv.fr).