Essex Police warns residents of phone scams impersonating officers

Summarised from 3 outlets · Updated 16 Oct, 16:29 · Archive

Essex Police has warned residents about fraudsters calling and impersonating police officers to seek bank details and cash.

Essex Police has warned residents about a fraud scheme in which scammers make phone calls while impersonating police officers. The force says it is aware of reports of fraudsters falsely claiming to call from Essex Police and seeking personal financial information.

Police have clarified what genuine officers will never request over the phone. They will not ask people to provide their bank account details, verify their PIN, give information about financial products such as stocks, shares or cryptocurrency, or request wallet details, recovery phrases or access codes. Police will also never ask residents to withdraw cash, purchase high-value items, or hand over bank cards, cash or purchases to someone visiting their home.

Essex Police advise anyone receiving an unexpected telephone call of this nature to hang up immediately. Before providing any personal information to someone claiming to represent the police or a bank, people should make sure they know who they are speaking to.

To verify a caller's identity, residents can contact their bank directly using the telephone number printed on the back of their bank card. Anyone wishing to verify whether someone claiming to be a police officer is genuine can dial 101 or use Essex Police's Live Chat service to check their identity and the reason for the call.

The force also cautioned that fraudsters may be able to keep telephone lines open after appearing to hang up. Using another phone to make verification calls is therefore the safest option to avoid being reconnected to the scammer.

How it is being reported

• Essex Police issue urgent fraud warningEssex Police warns residents about phone scammers impersonating officers and seeking bank details, PINs or cash.Colchester Gazette · 16 Oct, 16:00
• Essex Police issue urgent fraud warningEssex Police warns residents about phone scammers impersonating officers and seeking bank details, PINs or cash.Brentwood Guardian · 16 Oct, 16:00
• Essex Police issue urgent fraud warningEssex Police warns residents about phone scammers impersonating officers and seeking bank details, PINs or cash.Echo (Basildon) · 16 Oct, 16:00

In this story: Essex Police · Essex

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