New Amazon Prime Phone Scam Targeting Customer's Private Information And Bank Accounts, Police Warn
YONKERS, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) – Police in Yonkers are warning New Yorkers about a new phone scam targeting Amazon Prime members.
The Yonkers Police Department says they have already received reports from local residents saying they've been getting fake calls claiming their Amazon Prime account was having problems and their memberships needed to be renewed.
"This is a social engineering phishing attempt to induce the target to hand over financial data or personal information," Yonkers police warned on Facebook.
The unknown scammers are reportedly trying to trick people into handing over as much private information as they can get with the promise of fixing the victim's Amazon troubles.
Yonkers police cited a report that similar incidents are also taking place in the United Kingdom.
According to The Guardian, one woman was defrauded out of more than $30,000 through this scam.
"A scammer, posing as a customer service operative, told her that her Prime membership must have been fraudulently set up and that he would need access to her computer to improve the security settings," according to the report.
Police in New York are urging anyone who receives a phone call from an unknown person asking for your financial information to hang up immediately.