Fake police emails: scammers threaten Slovaks over unpaid fines
Slovak police warn of fraudulent emails impersonating official summonses. The messages demand a response within 24 hours and come from Gmail accounts.
Police warn of fake summonses being circulated by email
Slovak police are alerting the public to a new type of online fraud in which scammers misuse the police's name and send fake emails about unpaid fines. The information was reported by fontech.startitup.sk.
The messages are designed to create the impression of official communication. The senders present themselves as "federal prosecutors" and use phrases such as "evidence of your violations". However, the emails come from addresses like `[email protected]` — that is, not from official government domains.
A common feature of these messages is time pressure: recipients are urged to respond within 24 hours, which is intended to trigger panic and hasty action.
Police on social networks have emphasised that summonses are never sent by email. The only valid forms of service are a written letter by post or a telephone agreement. Anyone who receives such an email should ignore it, not click on attachments or any links, and mark the message as spam.
According to police, this is not an isolated case — the same fraudulent pattern is currently in circulation in several countries. The attackers' aim is either to obtain personal data or to extort money under various pretexts. The most vulnerable groups are elderly people and less tech-savvy internet users.
Although police have described the specific fraud as "laughable" for its conspicuous incompetence, they are taking the warning seriously. Behind similarly clumsily disguised emails, there may be more sophisticated forms of cyber attacks.
In case of doubt, police recommend contacting them directly through official channels or on the emergency line 158. Reporting suspicious messages helps authorities map out new tactics used by cyber attackers.
Source: Google News SK — Crime (sk)