Action Fraud and South Wales Police have issued warnings after an Amazon Prime scam has left people more than £400,000 out of pocket.
The scam involves an automated phone call from Amazon stating that someone has used the recipient's details to purchase a subscription.
The victim is then asked to press 1 to cancel the subscription and to download the Team Viewer app and fill in their bank details so they can stop a similar attack in the future.
But the customer is actually being connected to a criminal posing as an Amazon customer advisor who is able to access their financial details.
Action Fraud has so far received 200 reports from people who have lost money to the scam and a further 300 from people who have been targeted by the scam but have hung up the phone. They have also confirmed that victims have lost more than £400,000 since the beginning of September due to the scam.
South Wales Police have also shared the warning from Action Fraud to their Facebook page which has been inundated with people who have also been targeted by the scam.
Emma Jones commented: "My mum had this two days ago, they told her she had ordered an item at 7am in the morning when she debated it they went to great lengths to work out what item it was and said maybe it was another family member. They then told her she must have been hacked and that they will have to rectify it, luckily she cottoned on that Amazon don't ring so didn't give any details."
Another Facebook user, Karen Sanyal, posted saying: "We've had two calls asking to press 1 otherwise an arrest warrant would be issued."
Sinead Watkins, 27, from Mountain Ash had money taken from her bank account because of the scam. Ms Watkins said she lost £80 from Amazon which her bank confirmed was fraud.
"It's the time of the year where people are Christmas shopping with no extra money to spare and especially not for scamming people to take out of your bank account," said Ms Watkins.
A number of variants of the scam including victims being told that they are due a refund from the company have also been reported.
How to protect yourself against the scam?
Amazon has confirmed that it is aware of the scam. The company has stated it will never call a customer for payment outside the website.
If a customer has any doubt they can check the Amazon.co.uk help pages for guidance.
Pauline Smith, Head of Action Fraud, said: “If you’ve received an unexpected phone call, or other communication, stop and take a minute to think about whether an organisation would get in touch with you out of the blue in this way. Instead, contact them directly using a known email or phone number."
If you have been a victim of fraud or cyber crime, report it to Action Fraud online or by calling 0300 123 2040.
South Wales Police advised: "Never install software as a result of a cold call. Always question uninvited approaches and refuse unusual requests for person/financial information."
