Warning issued over phone scam

People are being warned to be vigilant after a report of a telephone scam in which the caller gained access to the victim’s computer.

A woman affected by the scam contacted the Advertiser to warn others.

She said the caller claimed to be from BT and could speed up their broadband.

Nicola Schofield, of Nottinghamshire County Council’s Trading Standards team said: “Unfortunately, telephone scammers often claim to be from a legitimate company to sell a service that doesn’t exist, gain access to a bank account or for other fraudulent purposes.

“We advise people to avoid buying anything on the spot over the phone and check with the company direct that the offer is genuine and from their sales team.”

A BT spokesman said: “Our advice is that customers should never share their BT account number with anyone and should always shred bills.

“We will never ask customers for personal information out of the blue and we’ll never call from an unknown number.

“If we’re getting in touch about your bill, it will usually be from either 0800 328 9393 or 0800 028 5085.”

Anyone wanting to report a scam can contact the Citizens Advice Consumer Service on 03454 040506.