Apprentice star who grills candidates for Alan Sugar is 'shamed' after falling for iTunes gift card scam

Daily Mail​

05-06-2025

A successful businessman and star of The Apprentice has admitted falling victim to an iTunes gift card con.
Publishing guru Mike Soutar, who grills candidates on the BBC series for Lord Alan Sugar, has told of his 'shame' after succumbing to an elaborate online fraud.
The entrepreneur, 58, was tricked into paying £150 for Apple iTunes vouchers, he has revealed.
He had received an email that he thought came from Scottish businessman Tim Allan, whom he sits alongside on the board of the V&A Museum in Dundee.
It asked him to buy £450 worth of vouchers for members of staff at the museum to recognise their recent hard work in preparing a new exhibition.
Mr Soutar, who said he was pushed for time, immediately bought vouchers to the value of £150 - but his credit card blocked his attempt to purchase more.
He then realised the email address the message had been sent from was different from Mr Allan's.
And when he called his colleague, who is chairman of the V&A Dundee, he realised he had been scammed.
Mr Soutar has now spoken out about falling prey, writing on LinkedIn: 'When Tim Allan CBE asks you to take on an assignment you snap to it.
'So when he emails a request for me to take on a "special assignment" early on Saturday morning, I am intrigued.
'"Can you buy some vouchers for some of the members of the team to recognise their hard work over and above the call of duty?"
'This is typical Tim. Brilliant at knowing the right time to make a personal gesture. And he's right - the team have been working overtime to put on an epic new Garden Design exhibition.
'We exchange emails. Tim says he knows he can trust me to keep it all confidential. And then: "Can you get the vouchers in the next 20-30 minutes?"
'Erm, OK, I reply, but it'll have to be online. "That's fine," he says, "Just get iTune gift cards, do £450-worth, send me the PINs and keep the cards in an envelope for me.'
'He sounds a bit stressed and impatient so I try to call him. I get no answer but, pressed for time myself, I buy £150 of vouchers.
'My credit card flags the second transaction and blocks it. I curse the overcautious fraud filter, and I tap on Tim's name at the top of the email address.
He has been interviewing candidates on The Apprentice on each series since 2011
'It is not his email address. I message him. He phones me back. "What's all this about vouchers?" I've been scammed.'
Mr Soutar ultimately got his money back but has gone public with the details, saying he wanted to warn others that anyone can fall victim to fraud.
He added: 'The part that stings is the sense of shame. The stomach-punch to your self-worth. The voice in your head saying, "You absolute mug, Mike. How did you fall for it?"
'The irony is not lost on me. I'm the man who catches unwitting candidates out on The Apprentice!
'But scams don't prey on stupidity. They prey on timing. On stress. On distraction. They exploit trust. That's why so many victims don't talk about it.
'Because it feels personal. It shakes something deeper than your bank balance.
'So here I am, not staying silent. Fraud can happen to anyone. Even me. Even you.'
Dundee-born Mr Soutar has had various senior executive roles in the publishing industry and was recently appointed to the UK Government's Board of Trade to champion the best of British business to the rest of the world.
He is seen alongside singer Sam Ruder as part of an SXSW London 2025 panel on Tuesday
His previous jobs have included being editor of Smash Hits magazine aged 23, managing director of radio station Kiss FM and co-founder and chairman of publishing firm Shortlist Media.
He has been one of Lord Sugar's on-screen interviewers of the final candidates on every series of the Apprentice since 2011, subjecting them to tough questioning.
Figures released earlier this week revealed Scottish victims have lost more than £860,000 to cyber criminals in the last year.
In what is dubbed a "scamdemic" by charity Advice Direct Scotland, the number of such crimes rose from 94 in 2021-22 to 1,119 in 2024-25 - up 1,090 per cent.