Cyber Crime and Scams
I am sure you have all been following the attack on ‘Talk Talk’ by hackers as yet unidentified or prosecuted. The company have admitted that customer personal and bank details have been compromised but insist that the bank and credit card details that they hold are insufficient to permit a direct bank fraud without additional information.
However, possession of even partial bank details (including of course the name of the bank), allows the scammer to make a much more plausible pitch to the victim. The scammer’s objective is to obtain the missing information together with security codes and passwords. Alternatively they attempt to get access to the victim’s computer to take money from their account.
Paul Lewis of BBC’s Money Box was describing one such attempt this morning on television. The target became suspicious and actually recorded the call, not before he had gone part way to giving computer access. Part of the pitch, which got the victim interested, was that he might be eligible for £200 compensation from Talk Talk (not true). Most telephone scams include a financial incentive, long before the advent of computers it was the con man’s oldest trick. Now they fall into carrot or stick categories, either ‘you can get; compensation, tax rebate, lottery win’ or ‘you may have been defrauded and could lose money’.
Remember, legitimate companies never call you and ask for financial details over the phone. Keep bank and credit card security numbers handy (they are usually on the back of your cards) and if in doubt hang up on the caller and check directly.
Pension Scams
I wondered how long it would take fraudsters to try to capitalise on the changes to pension legislation which took effect in April this year. The National Fraud Intelligence Bureau (NFIB) has been alerted to a pension scam whereby cold callers continue to target members of the public aged 50 to 60 years old to release and transfer their pension early. Suspected firms who advertise and arrange pensions are offering investments in alternative commodities such as hotel developments or property in Cape Verde, and operate as unregulated collective investment schemes.
Often, the cold calling ‘pension companies’ involved are neither regulated nor qualified to give financial advice and classify themselves as a ‘trustee’, ‘consultant’ or an ‘independent advisor’ and offer exceptionally high return rates for investors.
Protect yourself:
Further advice can be found at:
http://www.fca.org.uk/your-fca/documents/protect-your-pension-pot
http://www.fca.org.uk/consumers/financial-services-products/pensions/protect
http://www.thepensionsregulator.gov.uk/individuals/dangers-of-pension-scams.aspx

Ensure that you request that the risks and growth rates are explained and that you fully understand them before transferring your pension
Remember if the offer seems too good to be true, then it generally is!
David James

31 August 2015

Rural Crime
Non-dwelling burglaries remain a problem in our area but progress has been made following a successful policing operation in the Test Valley district.
The initiative, which is part of the force’s rural crime crackdown Operation Falcon, saw a 20 per cent reduction in the number of reported non-dwelling burglaries during the operation period.
Officers from the Test Valley Neighbourhood Policing Team targeted criminals operating in the rural areas and delivered crime prevention messages to residents to help keep their property and vehicles secure.
With much of the Test Valley district area being rural, the area presents unique policing challenges, and being able to prevent and detect crime is often harder with fewer witnesses to criminal activity coupled with greater opportunities for criminals to target isolated properties and businesses.
As part of the operation, the officers undertook:
• Increased patrols in the area;
• Investigated trends to identify hotspot areas;
• Worked with youth clubs and colleges to engage with teenagers in the local area;
• Provided crime prevention leaflets to residents in the local area;
• Worked with local retailers to identify stolen items;
• Reinforced the use of stop and search powers in the area;
• Highlighted measures like CCTV, etc., in hotspot areas.
Immobilise.
Being the victim of a burglary is extremely distressing and while the police have worked hard to get offenders off the streets we can’t be complacent. As an additional safeguard you might like to consider Immobilise.
This is a free property register enabling users to create a secure record of personal possessions such as laptops, mobile phones, cameras and various other items. Registering it on Immobilise can assist in reuniting you with your possessions if stolen or in deterring an offender from stealing them in the first place. Visit Immobilise at http://www.immobilise.com.
Benefits of property registration on Immobilise include:
• It’s free of charge and very easy to create your personal portfolio on-line;
• Almost any item of property can be registered within minutes;
• You can add specific details relating to items of property – i.e. serial numbers, photographs or individual features;
• If an item of your registered property is stolen you simply inform the Police and then log on to your account on Immobilise and update the status of the item;
• The system is linked to the National Mobile Property Register, which enables the Police to enter serial numbers of stolen items that they have recovered against the property registered. This can then result in items of stolen property being returned to their rightful owner and offenders being brought to justice for their crimes.

From Hampshire Police:
We are appealing for information after rogue traders stole £4500 from an elderly man in Andover.

Between 2pm and 3.30pm on June 25 two men and a teenage boy attended the 79-year-old victim’s house in Madrid Road, Andover where they over charged him for steam cleaning his driveway and obtained a large amount of cash for work which was not required to the roof of his home.

The first man was described as white, approximately 5ft 10ins tall and in his late 20s to early 30s. He had brown fair and possibly had a moustache. He had a slight Irish accent.

The second man was described as white, 5ft 8ins tall and aged late 30s to early 40s. He was of a medium build and had tanned skin. He was wearing a sports type jacket with three buttons down the front. The jacket was possibly tweed or dark green in colour.

The teenage boy was described as white, approximately 14-years-old and had square cut dark hair.

They were believed to driving in a white van with writing on the front doors.

We are appealing to anyone who may have seen the white van and the three people or who may have had similar work offered in and around the Andover area to contact us.

Members of the public are warned not to deal with doorstep callers and especially not to agree for any work to be completed without proper quotations being completed and allowing for the appropriate ‘cooling off period’.

Trading Standards offer free advice to any person who has been subject to similar incidents.

Anyone with any information is asked to contact DC Paul Barry at the Northern Investigation Team on 101 quoting 44150217868, or call the charity Crimestoppers line on 0800 555 111, where information can be left anonymously.

Amongst the scams highlighted by Hampshire Trading Standards at the Neighbourhood Watch meeting on 8th April was the ‘Loose Roof Tile Trick’. Someone knocks on your door with a broken roof tile in his hand saying it looks to have fallen off your roof and how dangerous this might be. He offers to check the roof and of course says it is in a bad state and needs work. If the victim falls for it, the usual excessive charges and aggressive demands follow.

Although this sounds hard to believe someone tried it on an elderly couple in Monxton last week, fortunately they did not fall for it and the incident was reported to me. The only information available was that the individual concerned was male and driving a small white van. He said that he would come back and if he does a better description and the van registration number will be made available.

If anyone has had a similar experience please let me know or report it to the police on 101.

Never ever buy goods or services at the door. I have stickers available from HCC to put on your front door to try and deter cold callers, let me know if you would like one.

If you have a thatched roof you can probably ignore this!

David James
01264 710049

From David Hazlett (Police, PC, Test Valley District)
On the 13th May 2015, two Stihl petrol tools were found, apparently abandoned, in the West Wellow area near Romsey. The items are manufactured by Stihl, both of which have orange casings.
1) Stihl FS120 “Cow Horn” Strimmer with harness
2) Stihl HS61 Hedge Cutter
We are keen to identify the owner and return the items as soon as possible. Please check any outbuildings, sheds, containers or lock-ups if you own similar items. Please call 101 and ask for PC Hazlett at Romsey. The reference number is 44150161775