Neighbourhood Watch message – Amazon scam
Please be aware of the following scam reported to Neighbourhood Watch (NHW) by one of its members.
In the view of the Kent Police Fraud Unit, concerns that the victim’s account had been hacked or accessed illegally are unfounded. They advise that this scam is a variation on previous reported scam attempts. If, however, any doubt exists as to the security of an account, NHW would always advise targeted victims to change their password. Police advice is shown at the foot of this page.
The scam reported:
I have just been targeted by an ‘Amazon scam’.
I was phoned by someone claiming to be from Amazon telling me that there was a suspicious transaction on my account. It was for £741 for the delivery of computer equipment to an address in Reading. He was very convincing (a soft American accent!) and knew my most recent Amazon purchase and my post code (obviously in hindsight insider information).
When I confirmed that I had made no such transaction, he told me that they could not cancel the transaction unless I completed a refund form. If I didn’t, I would be charged the £741. He was extremely insistent.
Although I was very suspicious, I agreed that he could email me a form. This required my bank details which confirmed for me that it was a scam. Needless to say, I didn’t complete the form.
Police advice is below:
