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Legal

Link arrow DHL United Kingdom | Link arrow Legal | Fraud Awareness

Fraud Awareness and Prevention

DHL encourages anyone who receives an unsolicited email appearing to be from DHL to question its integrity before opening any attachments, clicking any links or venturing into any further transactions.

Fraudulent Use of the DHL Brand

Attempts have been made to defraud Internet shoppers by the unauthorised use of the DHL name and brand via email communications and graphics which appear, on the surface, to have originated from DHL.

In most cases the communications concern the sale of consumer goods over the Internet where payment may be requested before the goods are delivered.

Please be advised that DHL does not request payment in this manner. DHL only collects money due for official DHL related shipping expenses.

This security notice does not affect the obligation of a consignee to pay shipping, customs, VAT or similar charges, where these are properly payable at the time of delivery.

DHL accepts no responsibility for any costs, charges or payments made which were improperly incurred as a result of fraudulent activity.

Please be advised that if you received an email suggesting that DHL is attempting to deliver a package requesting that you open the email attachment in order to affect delivery, this email is fraudulent, the package does not exist and the attachment may be a computer virus.

Please do not open the attachment or click any links. This email and attachment do not originate from DHL. For examples of recent email scams, please see our  Local Alerts.

The DHL name has been used in a series of fraudulent email scams, commonly referred to as “Phishing.” One such email suggests that DHL is attempting to deliver a package and asks the recipient to open the email attachment in order to affect delivery. These emails are not authorised by DHL – their authors are only using the DHL name in their message to grab the user's attention and lend apparent legitimacy to the emails.

DHL recommends not opening the emails if identified as being “from” DHL, and one or more of the following is the case:

  • You have received an email without a tracking number and you are not doing business with DHL
  • The email has an attachment and you are not aware that you are doing business with DHL
  • The email instructs you to open an attachment for the tracking number

The recipient of a questionable email containing a tracking number can verify if a tracking number is valid by inserting the tracking number into the “Tracking Number” box. If there are no tracking results returned, it is not a valid tracking number and the email referencing the tracking number has not been sent by DHL.
Track Now

If you are in any doubt as to the integrity of a website that uses the DHL brand, please always access DHL websites via our global website.
Visit DHL Global WebsiteExternal Link / New Window

If you have received a text message asking you to pay 45p by visiting http://dhlsecure.uk for a confidential letter we have on hold, the message is fraudulent and should be deleted. This is not a DHL website.

If you received an email suggesting that DHL is attempting to deliver a package requesting that you open the email attachment in order to affect delivery, this email is fraudulent, the package does not exist and the attachment may be a computer virus. Please do not open the attachment, click any links or enter into any correspondence with the sender of the email. This email does not originate from DHL.

If you are still in doubt about the authenticity of the email, track the number provided. If no tracking results are returned, it is not a valid tracking number and the email was not sent by DHL.

Recent examples of these are shown below.

From: DHL Express [mailto:webadm@dhl.com]
Date: Tuesday, May 30, 2017 11:02 AM
To: undisclosed-recepients:
Subject: DHL EXPRESS SHIPMENT NOTIFICATION

From: DHL.uk (mailto: personal email address)
Date: 31 March 2017 13:25
Subject: DHL On Demand Delivery


From: DHL.uk (mailto: personal email address)
Date: 03 April 2017 13:25
Subject: DHL urgent On Demand Delivery


From: "DHL Express"
Date: 18 February 2016 at 10:41:01 am GMT
Subject: Pick up Notice (#UK2206)

Action Required
Address Update Required

Hi, your shipment has experienced an exception.

TRACKING REFERENCE:GB00-987829777
SHIPMENT STATUS:Held for Pick-up
SCHEDULED DELIVERY: Not deliverable
WEIGHT: 2.29 kg.
DHL SERVICE:DHL Domestic Express
Tracking Information
Your parcel has experienced an exception. This could be due to several reasons including: incorrect address or no authorized person was available to receive the package.

Action Required
To receive your mailing, print out the enclosed shipment confirmation to collect the package at your local DHL facility. You might be required to show a valid photo ID.

From: DHL EXPRESS <dispatch@dhl.com>
Sent: 20 October 2015 10:24
Subject: RECONFIRM YOUR SHIPPING DOCUMENTS

Dear Valued Customer,

FYI

We got an instruction from our client to contact you based on the above subject.

We kindly ask you to find the attached and reconfirm your shipping documents asap.

Revert back immediately before goods are dispatched.

Regards

Mr. David Blair

Subject: Your latest DHL invoice : MSE7396821

If you receive an email with the subject line above and with an attachment in .doc format, please do not open it and delete it immediately. Genuine DHL invoices are in PDF format.

Other subject headings may look like similar to these:

Subject: DHL delivery failure report
Subject: DHL Delivery Status
Subject: DHL PACK STATION
Subject: DHL Global
Subject: Shipping information
Subject: Order details
Subject: Processing complete successfully
Subject: DHL Package delivery status

  • Never open an email that you do not recognise, just delete it
  • Never click on a link within an email unless it is from someone you know and trust
  • You are advised to ensure that you have an active personal firewall and up-to-date antivirus software running on your system at all times. This will help detect and remove these types of threats.
For further advice and assistance, contact your IT department or your Internet Service Provider.

Useful information on all aspects of data security and how to protect yourself can be found at www.getsafeonline.orgExternal Link / New Window

If you have received an email which you believe to be fraudulent or have actually been the victim of a scam email, you can report it via Action FraudExternal Link / New Window to the police.

Action Fraud provide a central point of contact for information about fraud and financially motivated internet crime. You can report your fraud experience onlineExternal Link / New Window or by calling 0300 123 2040. Lines are open Monday to Friday 08:00 – 21:00, Saturday and Sunday 09:00 – 17:00.

However, if you are unsure whether or not the email you have received is from DHL or you wish to report other potentially fraudulent activity, please contact us.