dorset alert and neighbourhood watch
Please see the following document from Dorset Police relating to their Op Luna campaign targeting telephone fraudsters.
| op_luna_press_release_(1).pdf |
ROGUE TRADERS ALERT
Rogue traders knock on your door and offer you a service, but overcharge you for poor, unnecessary, or incomplete work. The offenders offer services including; power washing driveways, cutting down trees and tending gardens and selling chainsaws and generators. They also carry out general building work including tarmacking, in exchange for cash.
• Never accept work from anyone who offers you it over the phone or at your door
• Never go to the bank with a tradesperson
• If you think a friend, relative or neighbour has been a victim, call the authorities immediately
• Visit www.buywithconfidence.gov.uk or call 0345 404 05 06 to find an approved tradesperson
If you're not sure who is at your door, don't open it! Check the identity of the caller by calling the company they say they are from. Use the number from the local directory or website, do not use the number they give you. Remember if the caller is genuine they will be happy to wait outside while you check on them by calling their organisation and or calling a family member or neighbour. Security chains are excellent on front doors to open the door slightly to ask who it is, whilst being secure enough to not let them in.
Contacting Dorset Police;
Dial 999 in an emergency-
Where life is threatened, people are injured, offenders are nearby or if immediate action is required
Dial 101 in a non-emergency-
If a crime has already happened, to give information about a crime or to speak to your local officer
Rogue traders knock on your door and offer you a service, but overcharge you for poor, unnecessary, or incomplete work. The offenders offer services including; power washing driveways, cutting down trees and tending gardens and selling chainsaws and generators. They also carry out general building work including tarmacking, in exchange for cash.
• Never accept work from anyone who offers you it over the phone or at your door
• Never go to the bank with a tradesperson
• If you think a friend, relative or neighbour has been a victim, call the authorities immediately
• Visit www.buywithconfidence.gov.uk or call 0345 404 05 06 to find an approved tradesperson
If you're not sure who is at your door, don't open it! Check the identity of the caller by calling the company they say they are from. Use the number from the local directory or website, do not use the number they give you. Remember if the caller is genuine they will be happy to wait outside while you check on them by calling their organisation and or calling a family member or neighbour. Security chains are excellent on front doors to open the door slightly to ask who it is, whilst being secure enough to not let them in.
Contacting Dorset Police;
Dial 999 in an emergency-
Where life is threatened, people are injured, offenders are nearby or if immediate action is required
Dial 101 in a non-emergency-
If a crime has already happened, to give information about a crime or to speak to your local officer
PROTECT YOURSELF FROM BOGUS WEBSITES
This is a message sent via Dorset Alert. This information has been sent on behalf of Action Fraud (National Fraud Intelligence Bureau)
Fraudsters are setting up high specification websites advertising various electrical goods and domestic appliances. These goods are below market value and do not exist. The website will state you can pay via card; however when the purchaser goes to pay, this option is not available and the payment must be made via bank transfer.
The fraudster entices the purchaser and reassures them it is a legitimate purchase by using the widely recognised Trusted Shop Trustmark. They then use the Trustmark fraudulently and provide a link on the bogus electrical website to another bogus website (which purports to be Trusted Shops). This website shows a fake certificate purporting to be from Trusted Shops and provides thousands of reviews for the bogus electrical website. These reviews are all fraudulent. The website has not been certified by Trusted Shops and therefore the purchaser is not covered by the Trusted Shop money-back guarantee.
Protect yourself:
This is a message sent via Dorset Alert. This information has been sent on behalf of Action Fraud (National Fraud Intelligence Bureau)
Fraudsters are setting up high specification websites advertising various electrical goods and domestic appliances. These goods are below market value and do not exist. The website will state you can pay via card; however when the purchaser goes to pay, this option is not available and the payment must be made via bank transfer.
The fraudster entices the purchaser and reassures them it is a legitimate purchase by using the widely recognised Trusted Shop Trustmark. They then use the Trustmark fraudulently and provide a link on the bogus electrical website to another bogus website (which purports to be Trusted Shops). This website shows a fake certificate purporting to be from Trusted Shops and provides thousands of reviews for the bogus electrical website. These reviews are all fraudulent. The website has not been certified by Trusted Shops and therefore the purchaser is not covered by the Trusted Shop money-back guarantee.
Protect yourself:
- Check the authenticity of the website before making any purchases. Conduct a ‘Whois’ search on the website which will identify when the website has been created- Be wary of newly formed domains. You can conduct this search using the following website – https://who.is/
- Conduct online research in relation to the website, company name and the business address provided to identify any poor feedback or possible irregularities.
- Check the Trusted Shops Facebook page where warnings about websites using their Trustmark are published. If you are in doubt about the legitimacy of a Trustmark then you can contact Trusted Shops on 0203 364 5906 or by email [email protected]. They will confirm whether they have certified that website.
- Payments made via bank transfer are not protected should you not receive the item. Therefore always try to make the payment via PayPal or a credit card where you have some payment cover should you not receive your product.
- If the item advertised seems too good to be true, then it probably is.
DOG NAPPING - HOLWELL
Police would like you to be aware of the following suspicious circumstances.
On Saturday 7 November in Swanage, a man described to be in his early 20s with short brown hair and wearing blue tracksuit bottoms, a blue jumper and a body warmer was seen to go into a garden and place a bowl of food on the floor in order to entice the dog over. The man was then seen to pick the family dog up and attempt to walk off with it. He was challenged and left the dog in the garden.
Previously to this, there has been a report of a similar incident in the Winterbourne Valley area of Dorchester. A grey VW Transporter van with a foreign number plate has been spotted acting suspiciously around dogs and their owners.
Please be alert to these incidents and keep your dogs safe.
BURGLARY - HOLWELL
An unknown person entered an insecure porch area of a home in Holwell and then searched a car on the driveway of the property. The thief then stole a ladies Barbour jacket, and olive coloured Buffalo Mountain jacket, a rucksack and some loose change from the car. This incident occurred sometime between the evening of Sunday 1st November and Monday the 2nd of November.
Please check your security arrangements and ensure that you lock all vehicles when you are not using them. Consider fitting an audible burglar alarm if you do not already have one.
If you have information regarding this incident, please contact Dorset Police on non-emergency telephone number 101, and quote incident number 04:0072
Police would like you to be aware of the following suspicious circumstances.
On Saturday 7 November in Swanage, a man described to be in his early 20s with short brown hair and wearing blue tracksuit bottoms, a blue jumper and a body warmer was seen to go into a garden and place a bowl of food on the floor in order to entice the dog over. The man was then seen to pick the family dog up and attempt to walk off with it. He was challenged and left the dog in the garden.
Previously to this, there has been a report of a similar incident in the Winterbourne Valley area of Dorchester. A grey VW Transporter van with a foreign number plate has been spotted acting suspiciously around dogs and their owners.
Please be alert to these incidents and keep your dogs safe.
BURGLARY - HOLWELL
An unknown person entered an insecure porch area of a home in Holwell and then searched a car on the driveway of the property. The thief then stole a ladies Barbour jacket, and olive coloured Buffalo Mountain jacket, a rucksack and some loose change from the car. This incident occurred sometime between the evening of Sunday 1st November and Monday the 2nd of November.
Please check your security arrangements and ensure that you lock all vehicles when you are not using them. Consider fitting an audible burglar alarm if you do not already have one.
If you have information regarding this incident, please contact Dorset Police on non-emergency telephone number 101, and quote incident number 04:0072
DORSET POLICE NEED YOUR HELP
Your Dorset. Your Police. Your View is your way to make your views heard on policing in Dorset. Each month during the campaign we will ask you to complete a survey on a different theme, we will then use these views to implement future changes to the way we police. This month’s theme focuses on modernisation of our force and includes topic areas such as body worn cameras. It can be completed through this link http://svy.mk/1egFOoy and should take no more than 5 minutes.
This your chance to shape our future.
Your Dorset. Your Police. Your View is your way to make your views heard on policing in Dorset. Each month during the campaign we will ask you to complete a survey on a different theme, we will then use these views to implement future changes to the way we police. This month’s theme focuses on modernisation of our force and includes topic areas such as body worn cameras. It can be completed through this link http://svy.mk/1egFOoy and should take no more than 5 minutes.
This your chance to shape our future.