‘Report survey scammers asking for bank details’
RESIDENTS have been told to report anyone asking for their bank account details under the guise of a new government survey to report the matter to the police.
The Statistical Institute recently announced that it has begun preparatory work for a new nationwide Household Budget Survey.
Statistical Institute officers have been knocking on doors as part of work to update their database of address details from April 22 to May 15.
They are asking questions strictly relating to the type of household and how it is used, the name of the respondent and the person responsible for the property, the number of people living in the household, and a telephone number. The main survey will be conducted from July 1, 2021 to June 30, 2022.
However at least one person in the Girne region claimed this week that they had been asked to provide their bank account details from someone purporting to be working on behalf of the Statistical Institute.
Türel Öksüzoğlu, the head of the Statistical Institute, told Cyprus Today that information is being provided to residents in English, which she said hopes
will be useful at stopping those who want to “manipulate the work of the Statistical Institute”.
“The main survey has not even started yet and people are trying to hinder the work that is carried out for the benefit of the public,” she said.
“I ask anyone who is asked for their bank details to please report their experience to us, or go to the police because this is a crime and the person behind it is trying to harm the Statistical Institute.”
The Household Budget Survey “will provide needed information about spending habits during the pandemic and much more” she added.
Statistical Institute field officer Veli Özkasap said that interviewers work through the week and within the hours permitted by the pandemic regulations.
Mr Özkasap stated that those collecting the data wear name badges and that in any case of doubt, the Statistical Institute can be contacted on 0392 601 3000 to verify the status of the worker. If residents cannot contact the institute during normal working hours, which end at 4.15pm, then they should “ring at 8am the next day” the organisation’s website states.
According to an official document sent by the Statistical Institute to this newspaper, the Household Budget Survey will be used to determine the basket of goods used to calculate inflation under the Consumer Price Index; track household consumptions patterns over a year that may change over time; gather data that helps to calculate ultimate consumption spending in national income; and gather data needed for “socio-economical analysis” such as the level of poverty based on consumption, the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on residents, and the standard of living of members of households.
Interviewees are asked to show the “necessary sensitivity” in filling out the questionnaire and are told the information collected is “entirely confidential”.