Kiwis lose millions to offshore scammers
Police are warning the public to be vigilant and wary of calls from phone scammers following a rise in complaints recently which have seen some victims lose tens of thousands of dollars.
Detective Sergeant Kelly Corby from the Auckland City Financial Crime Unit said an investigation, named Operation Hyattsville, is looking into more than 20 complaints from victims who have lost money in the past couple of months to phone scammers operating overseas.
One of these victims, 80-year-old Auckland City resident Marion, was conned by the scammers in a video posted today on the Auckland City District Police Facebook page.
Marion had $10,000 taken from her account after a caller convinced her that there was an urgent issue with her Spark account and they needed to access her computer remotely to fix the issue.
The convincing scammer asked Marion to download the Teamviewer application which allowed them to access her computer before asking for her banking details.
Fortunately, Marion’s bank got in touch after noticing suspicious banking activity and the money was able to be recovered.
Detective Sergeant Corby said unfortunately in most instances the victims are not as lucky as Marion, with several million dollars lost by Kiwis to these offshore scammers in the past few months alone.
“We are not talking about small amounts of money. On average, each victim has lost around $30,000 and these losses are absolutely devastating for our victims,” he said.
“Phone scams are nothing new, however we are concerned after seeing a growing trend of cases recently where victims have been conned over the phone.”
Corby said if you think you are a victim of a phone scam, you need to act fast and notify your bank immediately.
“There is a simple way to stop yourself from being a victim. Do not give your personal banking information out over the phone and do not allow the person over the phone to access your computer,” he said.
“There is no legitimate reason that a company will need to access your computer remotely. Do not download any application which allows them to access it.
A similar investigation by the Auckland Financial Crime Unit last year, Operation Deadwood, resulted in Police charging 18 people for money laundering offences after hundreds of phone scam victims lost more than $2.5 million.
Poll: Should employees be able to work from home?
At the post-Cabinet press conference, the National Party asserted they want public sector staff to return to the office. This has opened a conversation about other sectors in New Zealand who have adopted working from home (WFH).
Where possible, do you think employees should be able to work from home? Vote below and share your thoughts in the comments.
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70.4% Yes
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26.6% No
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3% Other - I'll share below
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Auckland School Holiday Events
Are you on school holiday duty? Here's some activities to get out of the house for! Feel free to add your own ideas in the comments below.
Sat, 28 Sept: Wild Robot Wonders at the Sky @ Sky Tower
Sat, 28 Sept: Starry Storytime @ Stardome Observatory
Sun, 29 Sept: The Block Dance party @ Aotea Square
Mon, 30 Sept: Cornwall Park Trading Cards @ Huia Lodge Discovery Hub
Mon, 30 Sept: Treasure Hunt @ Corban Estate Arts Centre, Henderson
Tues, 1 Oct: Dance-o-Mat @ Aotea Square
Tues 1 Oct: Rainbow Scultpure @ Aotea Square
Tues 1 Oct: Squiggla workshops @ Pah Homestead
Wed, 2 Oct: Night at the Museum: Time Warp @ Auckland Museum
Wed, 2 Oct: Steampunk a hat @ Northcote Library
Wed, 2 Oct: Make a Wind Vane @ Highwic, Epsom
Thurs, 3 Oct: Film: Peter Rabbit @ Uxbridge, Howick
Thurs, 3 Oct: Back to the Future Scavenger Hunt @ Northcote Library
Fri, 4 Oct: Starry Storytime @ Stardome Observatory
Fri, 4 Oct: The Wonky Donkey Show @ Uxbridge, Howick
Fri, 4 Oct: StarJam performance & games @ Aotea Square
Sat, 5 Oct: Flight Birds Club @ NZ Maritime Museum
Sun, 6 Oct: Make it Loud workshops @ Motat
Mon, 7 Oct: Roving the Red Planet: Robotics session @ Stardome Observatory
Tues, 8 Oct: Theatre: Peter Pan @ ASB Waterfront Theatre
Wed, 9 Oct: Theatre: Mrs Wishy Washy @ The PumpHouse Theatre
Thurs, 10 Oct: Film: Lilo & Stitch @ Uxbridge, Howick
Fri, 11 Oct: Starry Storytime @ Stardome Observatory
Fri, 11 Oct: Wilbur the Big, Not So Bad Wolf @ TAPAC, Western Springs
Sat, 12 Oct: Make butter for fairy bread @ Northcote Library
Sun, 13 Oct: Nature Play @ Myers Park
Sun, 13 Oct: K-Pop Free Dance Party @ Aotea Square
Sun, 13 Oct: Family Games Afternoon @ Mount Roskill Library
Click on your local library to see its upcoming school holiday events:
Albany Village Library, Central City Library, Waiheke Library, Mangere Bridge Library,Warkworth Library, Epsom Library, Botany Library, Highland Park Library, East Coast Bays Library, St Heliers Library, Onehunga LIbrary, Glen Eden Library, Birkenhead Library, Avondale Library, Otahuhu Library, Glenfield Library, Devonport Library, Titirangi Library, Papatoetoe Library, Wellsford Library, Waitakere Central Library, Parnell Library, Manurewa Library, Clendon Library, Takanini Library, Grey Lynn Library, New Lynn Library, Blockhouse Bay Library, Mount Roskill Library. See all Libraries here.
What else is there to do?
Butterfly Creek
Motat
Auckland Zoo
Howick Historical Village
Auckland Art Gallery
Stardome Observatory
Snowplanet
Rainbow's End
Scultptureum
Thrillzone
Kiwi Valley Farm Park
Aotea Square Ice Rink
Got more ideas? Share them below!
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