I want to buy a new bag, so I ask ChatGPT for help. You’ve always loved Russell & Bromley, so we asked you what’s popular right now on ChatGPT.
The artificial intelligence (AI) assistant offers crossbody, shoulder, casual, and formal options, and also displays the price next to it. Click through to sources to visit sites like Russell & Bromley’s official website and buy new bags at convenient sale prices.
However, the product never arrived. You gave your money to a scammer and your bank account information was collected through an elaborate scam where a fake site was created that looked like a genuine retailer.
Ask Silver, a fraud checking service, says that clone sites are showing up in ChatGPT search results. The company confirmed it was a copy of Russell & Bromley and furniture retailer Dunelm.
Ask Silver’s Anna Jones says the large language model (LLM) that powers ChatGPT may have been “poisoned.” This is when malicious content is injected into the information the AI learns, such as through cloned web pages set up by fraudsters.
She added: “In this case, the scammers appear to be taking advantage of the fact that Russell & Bromley went into administration in January 2026 and was absorbed by Next. As such, the official Russell & Bromley website no longer exists, but potential customers will still be looking for it.”
Louise Baxter, head of National Trading Standards’ fraud team, said people should not assume a website is genuine just because an AI tool recommends it.
“While consumers are increasingly relying on AI tools for advice and recommendations, criminals are adapting quickly as well. The fact that fraudulent websites can appear in AI-generated results is worrying and a stark reminder that fraudsters will exploit new technology to help them reach potential victims,” she said.
what does it look like
In our Ask Silver survey, we asked ChatGPT a general question: “What are your favorite Russell & Bromley wallets and bags?”
Results included details and prices of different bags, trends, and which bags are suitable for what occasions. Among the sources of answers were two fraudulent Russell & Bromley sites.
These sites seemed trustworthy. In some cases, they are offering huge ‘discounts’ of up to 80% on bags. In fact, the more you buy something, the more likely a scammer will scam you out of your money.
The address of a cloned website is often similar to that of a legitimate store. Ask Silver identified therussellbromleyofficial, russelllandbromleylondon, russellbromleyonlineuk and russell-and-bromley as some of the names of the fake sites.
The official Russell & Bromley store is located within the Next website.
What you can do
When shopping online, look at the addresses and be wary of clone sites. Genuine UK sites often use .co.uk or .com. Also, be aware that the title may contain extra words such as “official” or “sale.” Scam sites often only accept payments via bank transfer, which is an instant red flag, and offer deep discounts on products.
If possible, go directly to the retailer’s website instead of following the source. A Dunelm spokesperson said: “We recommend that customers only use our official website www.dunelm.com or the official Dunelm app.” He said that whenever retailers became aware of fraudulent sites, they worked hard to remove them as soon as possible.
If you realize you have handed over your financial information, report it to your bank and report the fraud.
Next, which acquired Russell & Bromley in January, said it was “aware of the situation” and was working to shut down the site.
A ChatGPT spokesperson said the fraudulent website has been removed from its search index. Users of AI tools can report sites that violate our policies through this form.
