by Gazette Reporter
Fraudsters posing as Humberside Police officers are targeting members of the public in a telephone scam designed to trick people into handing over money or personal information.
Police have issued a warning after receiving reports of suspicious calls in which scammers have used genuine-looking police telephone numbers to make their stories more convincing.
The technique, known as caller ID spoofing, allows fraudsters to disguise their real telephone number so that a call appears to come from a legitimate police number.
In one reported case, a caller pretended to be an officer called Neil Rinkin, using badge number 16304 and claiming to be calling from the police station at Clough Road, Hull, on 01482 356404.
Another caller claimed to be DC Neil Rinkin, using the same badge number and providing a false crime reference number, CR889476131.
A third report involved someone impersonating PC Hayes, using badge number D69006 and discussing a warrant and cryptocurrency.
Police are reminding residents that officers will never ask people to withdraw or transfer money to a so-called ‘safe account’, buy expensive items as part of an investigation or disclose banking passwords, PINs or cryptocurrency credentials.
People are being urged to be particularly wary of unexpected calls requesting personal or financial information, especially when the caller puts pressure on them to act quickly.
Anyone receiving a suspicious call should hang up immediately and independently verify the caller’s identity by contacting Humberside Police on 101.
Where possible, people should use a different telephone to make the call. If using the same phone, they are advised to wait at least 10 minutes to ensure the previous call has disconnected.
Residents should never rely on telephone numbers provided by suspicious callers or those displayed in their call history, as these may have been falsified.
Further advice about fraud and available support can be found at fraudwatch.org.uk, where residents can also sign up for future alerts.
