Scammers pretending to work for Police Scotland have conned £300,000 from unsuspecting victims.
Over 30 reports of people being visited or contacted by callous crooks impersonating police officers have been made in the last four months.
On each occasion, the victim was contacted by telephone from someone claiming to be from a bank fraud department and advised that their bank account had been compromised.
They were then asked to either transfer cash remotely to another account online or attend at a bank and remove cash, which would later be collected by a police officer.
While not every attempt to extort money was successful, the scammers managed to defrauded a number of victims across Forth Valley, Fife, Lanarkshire, Dumfries and Galloway, Tayside, Ayrshire and the Scottish Borders.
So far more than £300,000 has been defrauded from victims as extensive enquiries to trace those responsible remain ongoing.
Anyone with information is being urged to get in touch with police as officers are also asking people to remain vigilant.
Superintendent Hilary Sloan from Partnerships, Prevention and Community Wellbeing Division said: “While there are a number of ways police officers may look to contact you, please be mindful of this scam and always be suspicious of any unexpected contact.
“If you receive such a call, or visit, ask for the officer’s details and which department they work for.
"If the contact is by telephone, hang up and if possible use a different phone to contact the police service via 101, where you will speak to genuine members of Police Scotland and can request police officer verification.
“We began a national roll-out of new identification cards, which feature an up-to-date picture of the officer, along with other key information and various security enhancements that make them extremely difficult to replicate.
"This roll-out was started in October 2021 and all police officers should be able to provide this identification when carrying out legitimate police business.
“If you receive an email claiming to be from Police Scotland with a link to an external site to make a payment, this may also be fraudulent.
"Be aware of phishing scams and verify that any link provided is genuine. If you receive something claiming to be from us requesting any form of payment, contact us via 101 to investigate this matter before parting with your money.
“We are treating this ongoing scam with the utmost seriousness and have officers around the country pursuing various lines of inquiry.”
Those with information can contact Police Scotland via 101. Alternatively, an anonymous report can be made to the charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
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