Reports of people being cold called by fraudsters claiming to be government officials and requesting payment of an outstanding debt have been on the increase. They may claim to be from HMRC or DWP or more recently requesting amounts to be paid to unlock a PPI claim.
The caller (fraudster) states that payment can be made by purchasing gift cards such as iTunes or store gift cards and more recently gaming vouchers. They arrange to call at a later date giving time for purchases to be made at supermarkets and other stores. When they call all they need is the code on the rear of the card which then allows them to have control of the cash amount.
Incidents have been reported of people being scammed out of thousands of pounds at any one time.
The advice of Police Scotland is ask yourself these questions before making any transaction or agreeing to any transaction:
Why are you buying a giftcard?
Who is the giftcard for?
If you are not buying a giftcard to give to someone you know, you may be the victim of a scam.
A comprehensive list of the main fraud types can be found on the Police Scotland website by clicking the button below.
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