Scammers target vulnerable woman

A VULNERABLE Oldham woman paid out £2,500 after falling victim to a scam.

Trading Standards officers are now working to prevent others falling into the hands of the criminals behind scam letters and calls.

Over eight months the victim was targeted hundreds of times and handed over around £300 a month thinking she would receive more cash in return.

Officers eventually gave her help and advice and the victim, who still gets many similar letters, has learned to ignore them.

The most popular scams are sent by post or email, or involve a phone call. Some are sophisticated and well-worded letters on headed paper while others are illiterate and clearly fake. The mail is sent from all over the world and usually claims the recipient has won a large amount of money but must send an admin fee so it can be released. If the bait is taken, the victim is usually subject to other demands for cash to release promised prizes.

:: If you receive scam mail, or emails that don’t seem genuine from banks or companies with whom you have had no dealings, you can contact the Citizens Advice Bureau Consumer Service on 03454- 040 506 for further advice. NEVER respond to fake emails by demanding that you are not emailed again; it merely shows scammers their usually automatically-generated email addresses are genuine and you will probably be targeted more frequently.