The police warn of scammers who are after debit cards and bank details. Especially in North Drenthe, the number of reports has increased considerably recently. A number of questions to Anouk Harteveld of the Northern Netherlands police unit about the bank help desk fraud.
“These are people posing as bank employees. They call or come to the door and indicate that there is something wrong with the bank account. People then hand over their card in good faith. Sometimes their telephone or tablet as well. In full trust that it is someone from the bank who is at the door. But that is not the case. They are fraudsters who run off with the debit card and bank details to withdraw large amounts. “
“These are considerable amounts, between hundreds and thousands of euros.”
“We see that the elderly in particular are affected by this. They are confident and concerned that something might be wrong with their account. They may not be handy with online banking and are then more likely to provide their details.”
“We don’t know exactly why it is happening there a lot now. We see that reports often come from a concentrated area. That is now North Drenthe, but it can move to other parts of the province.”
“We do not yet have a specific description. If people report it, we can request camera images of the transaction at an ATM. We can use the images to track down the perpetrator.”
“No, this goes on all year round.”
“Know that a bank employee never comes to the door to pick up a card or call to request information. If the phone rings and you get that question, hang up. If someone is at the door pretending to be a bank employee, don’t open the door or try to close it as soon as possible. If you know someone is on their way to collect the pass, call 112. And report if you have become a victim.”