Warning after vishing scam

Police have issued a warning to the public after a Kennoway woman fell victim to a five-figure “vishing” (voice phishing) scam.

The incident happened on Wednesday when the 73-year-old received a phone call from a man claiming to be from Microsoft who said there was an issue with her computer.

After obtaining remote access to her machine, he accessed her online banking and took a five-figure sum of money from an account.

Sergeant Craig Fyall of Levenmouth Police Station said: “These criminals claim to be from legitimate organisations and can be very convincing. They take advantage of people’s fears to obtain personal information and steal money. Always be wary of callers requesting access to devices such as computers, laptops or tablets.

“If this happens to you, advise the caller that you will contact the company on your own terms to discuss this and hang up.

“Find the company’s phone number from their official website or a previous correspondence with them and call them back on a different phone to verify this.

“These criminals target the elderly and vulnerable, so please advise any friends, neighbours or relatives to be wary of such calls.”

Anyone with information can contact Police Scotland on 101 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.