Estonian police have cautioned people not to fall victim to phone scammers, who seek access to their online banking services. The amount of money defrauded from Estonians in 2021 is estimated at seven million euros, Estonian public broadcaster ERR reports.
On Tuesday, November 30, Urmet Tambre, the chief of the Police and Border Guard Board (PPA) Northern Prefecture, informed the viewers of Aktuaalne kaamera programme on ETV that scammers have begun presenting themselves as police officers. Fake police officers ask people on the phone if they have taken out loans on power of attorney and if they hear it has not been done, they require PIN-codes to identify the person. Some scammers have said they are from the Russian police to justify them speaking Russian or say that the call has to do with transferring money to another country.
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«To our knowledge, these calls come from Ukraine. Just the northern prefecture alone has received 1,500 notes from people about getting such calls. There have been eight notices in November, where people have trusted their callers and given them money. Scammers continue to use well-known schemes, acting as if they are from a bank and that they have discovered a shady transfer and are now collecting data,» Tambre explained.
As to chances of recovering the money lost, the police chief admitted that there is not much hope to get defrauded money back, ERR reports.
Phone scammers in Estonia pretend to be police
