‘I Wondered What I Had Done’: People Are Falling For A Scam Call Pretending To Be The Maltese Police
Malta’s police force have issued a warning over a number of scam calls currently happening in Malta.
One prominent scam involves a Maltese number calling one’s personal mobile.
Upon answering, a robotic voice explains how the individual had committed a crime and that an arrest warrant had been issued for them.
The person is then asked to press ‘1’ to continue and find out more.
While some noticed it was a fake scam call that wasn’t from the authorities immediately, others were left confused and shocked, with some business owners in Malta spending days worrying about it, not sharing the news of the call with friends or family out of fear they had inadvertently committed a crime.
“My business partner got the same calls as I did this morning… at first I thought, ‘what’s wrong, what did I do?'” one business owner told Lovin Malta.
And it wasn’t just him – a number of people told Lovin Malta that they were left with major concerns after receiving the call, even if they couldn’t figure out what they had “done”.
“If I was an older person I would’ve lost my mind,” the owner said. “And I tried calling them back, but the number doesn’t exist.”
The scam has become so widespread that the police force issued a statement warning people to ignore the calls.
Besides the phone call scams, there are at least two SMS scams currently occurring in Malta.
One involves an SMS being sent telling an individual that a package had arrived for them via DHL, and that a small fee needed to be paid before one could get the package.
Another involves an SMS that simply says that an individual has been given a refund of around €185 – and to access it, one just needed to follow the link and give their personal bank details. The link leads to a website with the MITA and gov.mt logos at the bottom in a bid to look legitimate.
If you ever receive a random phone call or SMS asking for your personal details in exchange for something, it may very well be a scam.
Before releasing any personal or bank details, please contact the police or a similar authority to ensure you are not being scammed.
Have you experienced any of these scams yet?
READ NEXT: Man Who Drugged Son And Forced Him To Have Sex With Prostitute To Prove He Isn't Gay Has Sentence Confirmed
