Scammers keep trying to rip people off over the phone. They want to swindle data or persuade them to make transfers. Now there is a new scam that even the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) is warning of.
The phone rings and an employee of the European police authority Europol answers. Anyone who experiences something like this should be careful. Because instead of the police, scammers are behind the calls, who are after personal data and money.
That’s behind the Europol scam on the phone
The scammers, posing as Europol employees, report an alleged identity theft over the phone. The data was stolen from those affected and is now being used for crimes, the warning said. In the course of the conversation, the fraudsters themselves ask for data in order to compare them. In addition, they sometimes try to tempt the called party to transfer various amounts of money.
A TECHBOOK editor was also recently called by an alleged Europol employee and informed about an identity theft. The person on the other end of the line spoke English with a heavy accent. The number had even tried several times throughout the day to call. In this case, fraud was also easy to identify because it was a mobile number: +49 176 23816914.
However, this is not always the case. In some cases, the scammers even use a technical process to display Europol’s real number on the phone when making calls. So they look deceptively real. This makes telephone fraud particularly dangerous and also intimidates those called.
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How can you protect yourself?
In general, people called should never reveal personal data on the phone if they do not know the caller personally and well. The BKA also points out that the police – regardless of which department or authority it is – never ask for transfers over the phone or ask about the financial situation. She also does not send people over to hand over a sum of money personally.
If you receive this or a similar call, it is best to hang up immediately. Don’t get caught up in a conversation. It is best to file a criminal complaint with the local police station.