Rye man tricked by computer scam

The force said it has received 77 reports from vulnerable victims so far this year with losses totalling £154,454.

The average loss has been around £2,000.

The scam typically involves the victim being told they have been hacked or their computer has a virus.

They are advised they need to install software, pay money or hand over details to protect their device from further damage.

Police said an 80-year-old man in Rye received a call saying his computer had viruses and security issues.

The victim thought this was odd as he had paid around £600 a few months ago to McAfee for anti-virus and computer protection, which was a three-year subscription.

Police said the fraudster persuaded the victim to give remote access to the computer and asked him to transfer £900 via Moneygram to sort out the problem.

The victim returned to his computer to find that he could not enter is password and had been locked out of it.

In another case, police said a 60-year-old woman in Brighton was contacted by a man purporting to be a security technician from Amazon and said her online security was at risk.

She was told had been hacked by someone in California and her IP address was not secure.

Police said the victim was advised to download an app which then gave scammers access to her computer.

They took her financial and personal details and transferred £7,900 from her accounts. The victim realised and contacted police.

PC Bernadette Lawrie, financial safeguarding abuse officer at Sussex and Surrey Police, said: “Please be wary if you receive an unsolicited call about the security of your computer. There are fraudsters out there who will try to capitalise on your concern to financially profit.

“We’re urging people to be careful make sure you know who you’re talking to. Remember - Computer firms do not make unsolicited phone calls to help you fix your computer.

“Fraudsters make these phone calls to try to steal from you and damage your computer with malware. Treat all unsolicited phone calls with scepticism and don’t give out any personal information. If you feel pressured, hang up and talk it through with a friend or family member.”

If you receive an unsolicited call do not allow remote access to your computer, do not be rushed or pressured into making a decision, as a genuine bank or another trusted organisation will not force you to make a financial transaction on the spot; they would never ask you to transfer money into another account for fraud reasons.

Remember to stop and take time to carefully consider your action, do not make a payment, make sure you know who you are talking to and if in doubt, hang up immediately.

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