Utena police warn of new telephone fraud scheme in Lithuania
Utena District Police are warning residents about a coordinated telephone fraud scheme in which criminals impersonate doctors, police officers and bank employees.
Fraudsters impersonate doctors, police officers and bank representatives
Utena District Police Headquarters issued an urgent warning on Facebook about a new, well-coordinated telephone fraud scheme. As reported by tv3.lt, this scheme has been actively spreading recently and involves several complementary impersonation scenarios.
The fraud begins with a call in which a purported employee of a health clinic or other healthcare facility offers to register for medical procedures or health checks. During the conversation, the victim often discloses their personal details themselves, believing they are communicating with a genuine representative of a medical facility.
Shortly thereafter, the same person receives a call from a purported police officer who informs them that the first call was allegedly a fraudster attack, and that criminals are now attempting to take out a loan or carry out illegal operations on the victim's bank account. In order to "protect" their funds, a purported bank employee also becomes involved in the conversation, urging them to quickly carry out various actions with the account.
Police emphasise that genuine officers, bank or healthcare facility employees will never ask for confidential information or demand that instructions be carried out over the telephone. Residents are urged to critically assess any information provided by an unknown caller and not to rush.
Utena District Police headquarters invite people to share this information with their relatives – particularly elderly people, who more frequently become victims of such fraud.
Source: Google News LT — Crime (lt)