Tag Archives: scam

A CLARE woman parted with a “substantial” sum of money after falling for a fraudster, sparking local gardaí to warn the public to be on the look out for potential ‘romance scams’ while looking for love. It has emerged that the woman met a man purporting to be a German engineer living in Galway on an online dating site. The relationship developed and they began privately messaging each other. The man told her he was involved in a project for work and needed money for materials which he would repay, however it emerged that this was a scam. Clare Crime Prevention Officer Sergeant Triona Brooks explains, “Between September and October this year a lady developed an online relationship with a man who said he was a German engineer living in Galway – the relationship started on a dating site and progressed to What’s App messages. He was very persuasive and told the lady that he was involved in a project …

GARDAÍ in Clare are warning the public to be wary of potential scam phone calls or texts. This comes after a quick-thinking North Clare resident foiled an attempt by a scam artist to get their financial details over the phone. According to gardaí the man received a phonecall from a 0043 number last week. The person on the other end said they were from Visa security in Dublin and that at 6 am someone had bought a phone on eBay for €150 while at the same time €1,100 was transferred from his account to Brazil. The person asked had they given their card details to anyone. Luckily the Clare man realised the call was suspicious and hung up. In advising people to be wary, Crime Prevention Officer Sergeant Triona Brooks revealed that she has also been unsuccessfully targeted by scammers. She outlined that she recently received a text purporting to be from Bank of Ireland. The text stated that her …

THOSE looking for love in Clare are being warned to be wary of online ‘romance scams’ which are reported to be on the rise. According to Clare’s Crime Prevention Officer, Sergeant Triona Brooks, “Use of the internet for dating purposes has increased and so unfortunately the number of scams associated with it and amounts of money lost.” She particularly warns against responding to requests for inappropriate photographs, saying they could be used for future blackmail attempts. And she has appealed to anybody who feels they have been a victim of an online scammer to contact gardai. Sergeant Brooks explains, “A romance scam is basically a scam employed by criminals which involves pretending to be romantically interested in a person with the objective of gaining their affection and trust with the perceived promise of a continued romantic involvement – the ultimate purpose of the scam is to encourage the victim to transfer funds to accounts in the control of the criminal …

The Garda National Economic Crime Bureau is reminding the public about the dangers of providing personal and financial details to third parties, following a number of recently reported scams. The first relates to a Bank Compromise Fraud (Vishing). The victim was contacted by an individual purporting to be from their bank stating their account had some suspicious transactions. In order to provide a refund, the victim was instructed to send funds via financial money transfer to locations including Nepal, Kenya and Cambodia. The second relates to a fraud targeting Indian and other nationalities after recently travelling to Ireland, who were contacted by phone and told they had incorrectly filled in a form at the airport in their country of origin. They were told their Visa would be invalid and they would be deported unless they sent funds via financial money transfer to India to rectify the issue. Detective Chief Superintendent Patrick Lordan, Garda National Economic Crime Bureau, said, “I want …

GARDAÍ have issued a warning of a recent telephone scam where a male or female caller states they are from Revenue and seeks immediate payment of a tax bill over the phone. The public are advised that the scammers may also give a telephone number to call back, in order for you to give your credit card details. Gardaí have warned that callers making these demands are not calling from Revenue. “An Garda Síochána would like to remind the public to be wary of any contact from an unsolicited source, whether it is by telephone or email. Do not give out your credit/debit card, bank account or PPS number to anyone who makes contact with you over the phone. An Garda Síochána, Revenue, nor any financial institution will ever call you and ask for your PPS number or bank account details,” a garda spokesperson said. If a member of the public receives a call from anyone requesting any personal or …

Gardaí have issued an alert about a telephone scam where a male/female caller states they are from Revenue and seeks immediate payment of a tax bill over the phone. They may also give you a telephone number to call back to give your credit card details. This caller is not calling from Revenue. This is a scam and An Garda Síochána would like to remind the public to be wary of any contact from an unsolicited source, whether it is by telephone or email. Do not give out your credit/debit card, bank account, or PPS Number to anyone who makes contact with you over the phone. An Garda Síochána, Revenue, nor any Financial Institution will ever call you and ask for your PPS number or bank account details. If a member of the public receives a call from anyone requesting any personal or financial information, they should end the call and report the matter to their local Garda Station, to …

Clare Gardaí are advising business owners in the county to beware following reports of a deception scam in Ennis. Gardaí in Ennis have been alerted to at least one instance of a scam where a male has posed as a delivery man and has been paid in cash for a low value product. The incident reported involved a well dressed male calling to a shop in Ennis with bulk boxes of matches. He informed the shop assistant that their boss ordered the items and that he was to be paid cash on delivery. He  then gave over an order docket with a description of the product but it contained no contact details. He then asked to be paid an amount which was more than the product was worth. He left after receiving the cash and the sales assistant later discovered the manager never ordered the product. Clare’s crime prevention officer, Sergeant Joe Downey has asked businesses to be vigilant for …