Highlands and Islands MSP Jamie Halcro Johnston has pointed to new YouGov polling which has found that almost half of Scottish adults have been targeted by financial scams in the last year.
The poll of more than 2,000 people was carried out on behalf of Citizens Advice Scotland at the start of their scams awareness campaign. It also noted that a third of those targeted had been approached more than three times over the year.
Scammers had attempted to entrap people by pretending to be HM Revenue and Customs Officers, providing IT support and contacting about accidents and injuries.
The Conservative MSP, who has previously raised the issue of scams in the region with Scottish Government ministers, echoed the Citizens Advice Bureau network’s calls for people affected to stop, report and talk about their experiences.
Jamie Halcro Johnston said:
“While calls from sales people can be a real nuisance, these scam calls are of considerably greater concern.
“Scammers are nothing more than cowards and criminals, often making off with considerable sums of money by targeting some of the most vulnerable in our society.
“People can be left embarrassed when they fall victim to a scam, sometimes even blaming themselves. But it is important that those affected get in touch and report scams when they happen so that the authorities can take action and try and prevent it happening again.
“There are a number of people who can help, from the police to Trading Standards or your local Citizens Advice Bureau. That way, wherever people live in the Highlands and Islands, we can make a real difference in cracking down on these sorts of calls, emails and other attempts to defraud.”
