With fraud on the up, Sgt Simon Rogers forwent his usual crime figure update last week to warn Barnard Castle Town Council of common cons and scams doing the rounds in Teesdale.
He revealed there were 57 types of fraud known to police with a HMRC scam one of the most popular at the moment.
“Hang up on them,” said Sgt Rogers.
“Usually, they will have done some digging before, will have some ideas about you and ask lots of questions.”
Sgt Rogers also warned of banking scam which has left some victims thousands of pounds out of pocket.
He explained: “They will say they are from the bank and tell you to ring back for whatever reason – but fraudsters can hold the line open for up to ten seconds and when you next call your local branch, they could have your details.
“Before you know it, your savings have probably been transferred off to a foreign land.
“Ring someone you know – that will disconnect the fraudsters off your phone.”
Weak passwords like “1234”, bogus smart phone updates and “text spoofing” were also on Sgt Rogers’ radar.
He said police also received a “surprising” number of calls about fake online sales of items like caravans.
“Lights should be flashing when someone says ‘bank transfer’,” he added.
A Barnard Castle resident lost a “substantial” sum of money earlier this year after being conned by a cold calling scam with an Apple iTunes card. Sgt Rogers told council members how scammers rung victims with warning of increasing fines from HMRC on the cards.
“There can be £10 to thousand of pounds of these cards and you will not get that back,” he said. “It’s a current one people need to be aware of.”
Being vigilant with door knockers looking for work on roofs and drains was also urged.
“Think about having chains on your doors,” added Sgt Rogers. “I would never take work off someone knocking on my door.
“Just say no thank you – if someone becomes pushy, ring police on 101 and, if it’s a genuine person, they will stay.”
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