GMP working to beat the fraudsters

Dep. Chief Constable Ian Pilling and Dep. Mayor Bev Hughes meet Senior Scam Busters

Greater Manchester Police is cracking down on scams, which result in more than 2,000 reports of fraud recorded every month across Greater Manchester.

In November 2017, GMP launched its Cyber and Economic Crime Awareness Service (CECAS) a dedicated team to safeguard victims, provide prevention and awareness information and disrupt offenders.

Since its launch, 1,200 victims have been referred to the team enabling GMP to provide support and advice to those victims as well as gather intelligence on upcoming and prevalent scams in order to provide the wider public with information on how to protect themselves.

With a large percentage of those falling victim to telephone scams, online scams and doorstep crime being older members of the community, the Force has also recruited a band of older and retired volunteers for its Senior Scam Busters Team, who are trained to give fraud advice and guidance to their peers.

Detective Superintendent Nicky Porter of GMP’s Economic and Cybercrime Service, said: “Fraud is a widespread problem nationally as well as in Greater Manchester and can have a devastating impact on people’s lives.

“Fraudsters are becoming increasingly sophisticated in the tactics they use to scam people, however tackling it is a top priority for GMP.

“We are dedicated to targeting and deterring offenders as well as promoting prevention advice to the public.

"The more information we can give people about fraud and how to protect themselves, the easier it will be to stop it from taking place.

“Fraudsters often target older and more vulnerable people, but I would urge anyone who suspects they have been a victim of fraud to report it to Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040.”

GMP has the following advice to avoid being a victim of a scam:

• Never give money, bank details or personal information to someone you do not know or trust.
• Make sure you check the person’s identity before handing over money or signing any documents.
• Don’t be pressured into making a decision you are not comfortable with – take time to discuss it with someone you trust.
• Be suspicious of phone calls, texts or emails which come out of the blue asking for personal and financial details or asking you to withdraw money.
• If you receive a call that raises your suspicions hang up the phone and allow at least five minutes for the line to clear.
• Set strong passwords and use different passwords for different accounts.
• Don’t send sensitive information over public Wi-Fi.
• Install up-to-date and trusted security software onto your devices.
• Be wary of email and texts from people you don’t know.

Greater Manchester Police has a dedicated fraud Twitter account to deliver crime prevention advice to residents. People can get regular updates, information and advice by following @GMPFraud.