Fake Amazon Representatives Involved in England’s Phone Scam

• At least 200 people who were cheated out of more than $441,000 in total.
• To prevent yourself from falling to these traps, visit actionfraud.police.uk to know what to do and when.

Recently, scammers impersonating representatives from Amazon were reported calling up Amazon users and offering them a variety of services including free delivery, but only when users follow their commands. Many users took the bait, only to realize later that it was a scam.

How does the scam work?

As per media reports, a caller claiming to represent Amazon Prime, Amazon’s paid subscription service, would offer the users in Malvern access to services such as free two-day delivery.

• The scams start with an automated telephone call.
• It ends with the victim downloading a piece of software on their system.
• This gives the criminal access to the victim’s computer.
• In the final stage of the scam, the crooks ask victims to log on to their online banking account.

It is when the fraudster seizes the opportunity to steal their banking details, or even deflect the victim’s attention elsewhere while money is being deducted from their account.

Amazon reacts

“We take phishing and spoofing attempts on our customers seriously...we will never call a customer for payment outside of our website,” said a spokesperson for Amazon.

The spokesperson further said that if a customer has concerns or receives a suspicious call, they have the easy option to check the Amazon.co.uk help pages for the right action. “Customers should never provide personal or financial information to unsolicited callers, or ask them to take any actions on their Amazon account," he added.

How grim is the situation?

The scam has been reported across the country.

• As per Action Fraud, the U.K’s national reporting center for fraud and cybercrime, there have been multiple call complaint about the scam since September 2019.
• There were at least 200 people who were cheated out of more than $441,000 in total.

A detective inspector from the West Mercia Police economic crime unit, said she and her team is encouraging all reports of such calls to be passed onto actionfraud.police.uk.

Ensuring safety

Computer users need to evaluate their online safety. Up-to-date security software and using secure passwords is a must. To prevent yourself from falling to these traps, visit actionfraud.police.uk to know what to do and when, advises the detective.