Security

If you’re going to impersonate an officer, perhaps choose a more sophisticated way to nick cash than asking for gift cards…

The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) is warning the public to be wary of scammers spoofing its switchboard number in an attempt to profit by calling marks from a "trustworthy" number.

A member of the public reported an attempted scam on Monday afternoon. A phone call came in from what appeared to be the PSNI’s switchboard number, and the caller pretended to be a member of the force inquiring about a case in which the recipient was involved.

“The caller told the person there was an investigation linked to their name involving money transfers to narcotic-related countries and was subsequently asked to provide information about their bank cards,” said the PSNI’s Inspector Walker.

We don’t have any expert criminals here at The Register, but we think it would be pretty sage advice for someone looking to increasingly pass as a police representative not to be so stupid as to ask for gift cards as “part of the investigation process.”

“The caller then asked them to purchase gift cards and send across the codes for those, stating that this was part of the investigation process and that the money would be returned to them,” Inspector Walker added. 

“This made the reporting party suspicious, however, and thankfully, the victim didn’t share any of their personal or bank details with the caller, who they then blocked.”

Officials confirmed to The Register that the police’s number was spoofed, and this case was not instigated by a real member of the switchboard team.

Spoofing the switchboard’s phone number marked “a very concerning situation,” Walker said, urging the public to remain vigilant to similar calls.

The PSNI is continuing to make follow-up enquiries about the report, but has not yet detained any individual in connection with the attempted fraud.

Anyone who falls victim to digital fraud in the UK should contact the police, their bank, and Action Fraud, all of which can offer the necessary assistance.

“Our advice is that you should never disclose your personal or financial details over the phone, in person, or by email, to someone you don't know,” said Walker. “Guarding your personal and banking details is essential.”

The attempted scam is the second disclosed by the PSNI in as many days.

On Monday, it warned of a separate case involving an elderly woman being defrauded of a sum north of £250,000 ($336,000) after being targeted by individuals operating a fake cryptocurrency scheme.

“After initially sending a relatively small amount, the woman then ‘invested’ larger amounts on a number of occasions after the criminals convinced her that she needed to send more in order to get her initial investment back,” said Detective Inspector Moffett, of the PSNI’s Serious Crime Branch.

“After she unknowingly downloaded malware at their instruction, they were able to gain control of her electronic devices and, we believe, transfer further sums from her account.”

Cryptocurrency investment scams are among the most pervasive in the world, with figures from the US suggesting the problem is growing increasingly severe.

According to the FBI’s annual digital crimes report, it received 48 percent more complaints about crypto investment scams last year than it did the year before, with losses also rising 25 percent. Much of this pain was shouldered by those aged 60 and over, the agency added. ®