Opinion : Now the scammers are using the telephone to target victims
Sadly most of the newfangled modern technology like computers and portable phones have fallen foul to hackers, criminals and other rascals who use the devices for their own devious means.
Now it seems even the humble telephone is being used to target the vulnerable and unwary out of money and personal details.
An article appeared today on the news section of this site announcing that scammers are calling residents in the Wycombe District in order to try to get bank details from their victim.
The scammers are apparently claiming be calling from ‘Wycombe Council’ or ‘Wycombe Town Council’ and say that they have got your phone number from NHS Direct. They then ask if the person they are speaking to, or a member of their family, has had an accident in the last two years. In one of the calls the scammers asked the resident for their bank account details.
What is the world coming to if one can’t be sure of the authenticity of a telephone call before one picks up the receiver?
In my opinion telephone scams are worse than computer scams because when targeted by phone you actually get to listen to the voice of a criminal and they get to listen to you too.
If my good self receives one of these scam calls they won’t get very far with me. Indeed if a voice at the other end of the line said they were calling from the Council yours truly would soon let them have a piece of my mind about the introduction of fortnightly black bin collections, the exorbitant amount we pay in Council Tax and the number of new homes being given planning permission in the town.
No doubt many will be caught out by the calls and may give out their bank details putting their life savings at risk.
It’s not as if the message in the calls is implausible, let’s face it with the uneven state of repair of many of the pavements in the town centre an awful lot of people will probably have tripped, tumbled or fallen resulting in accidents galore.
For a long time your humble servant has been wary of anything sent to me through the internet or electric mail. Now I shall be just as wary with the content of telephone calls no matter who they are from.
It seems the modern world in which we live is a very dangerous place. The new inventions that were supposed to help us are actually being used to trick, cheat and deceive us.
Maybe it’s time we gave up phones, computers and the like and returned to the proper letter as a means of communication. At least we know where our replies are going when we send a letter.
What do you think?
*My next blog will be published on Friday evening around 8pm here on the WycombeToday.com website.
