Salzburg warns: fraud stitch by false police officers in circulation

Salzburg warns: fraud stitch by false police officers in circulation

Lately, a questionable fraud stitch in Austria has caused a stir: Unknowns are out of the question as police officers and put unsuspecting citizens under pressure with the threat, their relatives would have to go into prison, unless they pay a deposit. The Salzburg police have now warned of these unscrupulous calls and appeals to the population to be vigilant.

The fraudsters proceed as follows: they call their victims and present themselves as police officers. A typical scenario starts that the caller claims that a close relative has caused a fatal accident. In order to avoid that this relative is arrested, a deposit must be paid immediately. Those affected are put under pressure to maximize the psychological effect. After the money has been transferred, it is picked up by an accomplice who pretends to be a civilian.

The target group of fraudsters

Older people in particular often fall for this stitch because they are often good -faith and helpful. It is important that the population is informed about this attempted fraud. According to the police, it turns out that real police officers never ask for money or personal information by phone. In the event of suspected fraud, you should contact the police immediately and keep calm in any case.

In order to protect yourself from such fraud attempts, there are some helpful tips:

• be particularly careful when calling from unknown numbers.
• Check the story: Talk directly to relatives or friends to clarify the situation.
• Never release information about your assets.
• Do not support yourself under pressure - if in doubt, put on!
• Do not open doors for strangers.
• they never handed over money or valuables to strangers.
• call for a certificate from alleged police officers to check their identity.
• call the emergency number 133 to check whether the person is actually from the police.
• Note the warnings of bank employees who can recognize signs of a fraud.

The false police officers take advantage of the fear and concern for relatives to enforce their machinations. It remains to be hoped that the population will remain aware and take the necessary steps to protect themselves from such fraudsters. Further information can be found in a report on www.5min.at .