Eastern Finland police warn of fraud cases – 25 million euro investment scam under investigation
Eastern Finland police have recorded hundreds of fraud crime reports between May and June. Under investigation is also an alleged 25 million euro investment fraud.
Police warn of gift card, Klarna and investment fraud in Eastern Finland
Google News FI — Crime reported on a statement from Eastern Finland police, in which the authority warns of several different types of fraud. The police department's criminal commissioner Juha Leinonen states that the police have recently received numerous crime reports of Klarna, Paysafe and dental appointment booking fraud.
One concrete example is a retiree from Southern Savonia who received an email apparently from a friend belonging to the same retiree organisation. The message urged them to purchase Paysafe gift cards worth 700 euros. The retiree purchased the cards and sent pictures of them to the fraudster – and lost the entire sum.
In Klarna fraud cases, perpetrators have approached victims with an urgent robotic call claiming to be from the online payment service Klarna. The purpose of the call has been to get the victim to cancel a fictitious Klarna payment. In the dental appointment booking fraud, meanwhile, a man from Mikkeli received a text message stating that a doctor's appointment had been booked for the next morning and containing a link to cancel the appointment. The man clicked the link, but no financial loss occurred on this occasion, as the link did not work.
Between May and the first half of June, Eastern Finland police recorded a total of 311 reports of fraud or payment instrument fraud. Of these, 164 were crimes utilising computer networks.
Criminal commissioner Leinonen reminds that fraud typically involves phishing for bank, personal or other sensitive information via email, text message or phone call. Fraudsters often invoke urgency, which is why it is important to stop and consider before making decisions. Money transfers should not be approved in uncertain situations, and internet banking credentials or payment card information should never be handed over to third parties.
Eastern Finland police's statement also mentions a considerably larger matter: the National Unit for Investigation of Computer-Assisted Crime, operating within the Central Finland police department, is currently investigating an alleged investment fraud whose estimated criminal damage is approximately 25 million euros. The pre-investigation of the case began in May, and the suspected crimes are estimated to have occurred a few months earlier. The overall matter is being investigated as aggravated fraud.
The victim was lured into the fraud through social media into an investment service operating online. Initially, the platform functioned as a normal investment service, and the victim was able to withdraw some of their funds – which increased trust and led them to invest more money. Eventually, the victim lost access to the platform and could no longer contact the service provider. The funds left on the platform were not returned.
According to police assessment, the entire investment platform was created for the purpose of committing computer-assisted crimes and this is a matter of international organised crime. According to the police statement, fraud crime is currently the fastest-growing form of organised crime.
Source: Google News FI — Crime (fi)