Scammers hit refugees in NZ

"We are seeing it every day." Assistant bank manager Katie Hadwin

Palmerston North’s refugee community are among those targeted by scammers.

Whether it’s phone calls, doorknocking, or online and email scams, many refugees have experienced scammers asking for money or personal details, English language assistant Chuda Ghimirey said.

One family was left out of pocket after a scammer pretended to be from Immigration NZ and threatened to detain the family if they didn’t cough up $1600 worth of vouchers.

Ghimirey said this was just one example of an immigration scam people had been hit with.

Ghimirey helped interpret a presentation about scamming to about 35 people from Bhutan, Nepal and Myanmar in Palmerston North on Monday.

Refugees were friendly and vulnerable people, he said.

Their backgrounds and upbringings were different from Western people and they faced challenges with language.

Stories that emerged from the presentation included refugees being targeted in immigration scams, online scams and phone scams.

One family was called three times a day and also door-knocked, with a scammer saying they had money to collect in Wellington.

Ghimirey said the family reported it to the police.

The presentation, organised by Westpac bank, aimed to inform refugees about how they can best protect their money and personal information.

Assistant bank manager Katie Hadwin said refugees were not exclusively targeted.

But they were among the many people experiencing phishing scams, identity fraud and online scams that targeted Facebook and email accounts.

‘‘We are seeing it every day.’’ Hadwin said it was important people knew how to best avoid scammers.

So far, the bank’s held five presentations about scams throughout New Zealand, which about 110 refugees attended.