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Older scams still in use

Mobile telephone fraud

We have been advised of a telephone fraud currently in operation – this applies to home and work telephones, landlines and mobiles.

If you receive one of these calls, upon answering the telephone you will hear a recorded message congratulating you on winning an all expenses trip to an exotic location. You will then be asked to press 9 to hear further details.

If you press 9 you will be connected to a premium rate line that costs approximately £20 per minute. Even if you disconnect immediately, it will remain connected for a minimum of 5 minutes costing around £100. The final part of the call involves you being asked to key in your postcode and house number which has other serious consequences. After a further 2 minutes you will receive a message informing you that you are not one of the lucky winners. The total bill by then will be £100.

Since the calls are originating from outside the UK, BT and other telephone companies are left relatively powerless to act. The only safe solution is to HANG UP before the message prompts you to dial 9, even safer HANG UP on any unsolicited 'free offer calls.'

There is another scam operating on mobile phones as well. A missed call comes up, the number is 0709 020 3840, the last four numbers may vary, but the first four will remain the same. If you call this number back you will be charged £50 per minute.

Please be aware of these two telephone scams and avoid becoming a victim.

More information

If you receive a phone call on your mobile from any person, saying that, he or she is a company engineer, or telling you that they're checking your mobile line, and you have to press # 90 or #09 or any other number, end this call immediately without pressing any numbers. There is a fraud company using a device that once you press 90 or #09 they can access your "SIM" card and make calls at your expense.