Gloucestershire: Public urged to 'stop and think' in scam warning

Online shopping fraud is the "biggest fraud threat" to Gloucestershire residents

Gloucestershire Police is advising the public to "do nothing" if they believe a fraudster is contacting them.

The force has seen an increase in fraud over the past year, with 3,144 individual cases reported in the past 13 months.

Those selling motor vehicles and electronics online are said to be "in an area of high risk".

Det Sgt Simon Shaw said the fraudsters rely on "participation", urging people: "If you're not sure, just stop."

Banking app 'spoofs'

Det Sgt Shaw said that online shopping fraud is the "biggest fraud threat" to people in Gloucestershire due to the increase in online shopping since Covid, with 778 cases reported in the past year.

Online shopping fraud refers to the non-delivery of products bought by a consumer, or the misrepresentation of a product.

Det Sgt Shaw said that Facebook Marketplace is the "highest risk platform", according to reports of fraud in the county.

"It affects buyers and sellers," he said.

"If you're selling an item, we see a lot of reports where the purported buyer turns up and appears to make a payment via an online banking app and it can look plausible.

"But online banking apps can be spoofed - people can buy software so it looks like the appearance of an online banking app but it isn't.

"So they take your item away and you quickly find you haven't been paid."

Det Sgt Shaw advised people to consider other forms of payment, such as cash, when selling items to strangers online.

'Just stop and think'

Meanwhile, Gloucester residents have reported scammers calling from a number that starts with 01452 - the area code for the city.

With phone, email and text scams, Det Sgt Shaw said the easiest way to defeat these kind of frauds is "believe it or not, doing nothing".

"If you're not sure, just stop," he said.

"Most fraudsters will need you to participate and they will try and panic you into acting quickly without thinking.

"If you just stop and think, that's a big defence."

'My heart just sank'

Lucy from Huntley lost £80 when she was scammed buying tickets to a sold out event on Facebook.

She said she was "so disappointed" in herself for falling for the scam.

"If anything my heart just sank," she said.

"I had so many horrendous words for myself in that moment, I just should have known better.

"I never thought I'd be the person to get scammed, ever."

Meanwhile, one Gloucester man was contacted by someone pretending to be from O2, claiming to be able to give him a better deal on a phone.

"But the thing was O2 don't phone their customers as I found out later when I phoned O2 on the direct line through the computer and they confirmed that they don't," he said.

Another woman said she has received texts with links to "claim money back" from her energy bills.

"If it's got a link at all, I just delete it," she said.