This in from the police, in their own words, Ed
An 85 year-old man from Shanklin was called on his home phone by a man claiming to be a financial investigator from Barclays Bank on Thursday, 10th December.
The man asked the victim to purchase a ‘pay as you go’ mobile phone and told him to leave his home phone off the hook. He was told that by following these instructions he would be helping to catch fraudsters.
The victim was approached the following day by a man acting suspiciously in Newport, who may be connected with the attempted fraud.
Description of suspect
This man was described as around 5ft 6ins tall and was scruffy in appearance. At no point did the victim disclose his bank details or give money to either of the men he described.
The matter has now been referred to the national Action Fraud team.
Useful advice
We’d like to take this opportunity to remind people to protect themselves from fraudsters by using the following advice:
- Never give out any personal information about your bank account to anybody over the phone.
- If someone calls claiming to be a police officer, ask for their identification number and police force. Hang up the call and advise that you will call them back using the 101 number. A genuine police officer will not mind waiting while you check. Call them back from a different phone if possible or wait at least 10 minutes before making the call.
- If you have given out information which could compromise your bank account security in any way, call your bank up to cancel your cards as soon as possible.
- Never hand over money to someone at the door to be sent off elsewhere.
- If someone comes to your door claiming to be a police officer or staff member, always ask for identification and make a note of their identification number. Ask them to wait while you verify their identity. Close the door and call 101.
Anyone who is concerned about similar incidents should contact police by calling 101. If a crime is in progress, please call 999.
Image: peddhapati under CC BY 2.0
