Do you have elderly or vulnerable relatives that rely on others to help them manage their financial affairs? #FraudByAP

Good afternoon,

Regular readers may be under the impression that fraud will be perpetrated by a stranger.  This is certainly not always the case.  Regrettably, trusted friends, family members, and carers stole more than £51million in the 2025/26 financial year according to City of London Police.  The true figure is likely to be much higher as research shows that fraud often goes unreported.

Find out more about how to protect your loved ones from fraud by Abuse of Position: www.reportfraud.police.uk/news/abuse-of-position/ and in the attached leaflet.

We share information to try to prevent fraud, but we know that some of you might find some of the alerts distressing.  If you’ve been affected by the thought of any crime type, please do contact the Victim Care Hub for free, confidential, support:  https://www.hampshireiowvictimcare.co.uk/  or phone 0808 178 1641

Please do share this important update with friends and family and encourage them to sign up for their own Hampshire Alert: https://www.hampshirealert.co.uk/ 

Hampshire Alerts is not a crime reporting portal – please do not report crime here.

If you realise you’ve been defrauded and wish to report a fraud that has already happened, please report it to Report Fraud either by phone 0300 123 2040 or online at: https://www.reportfraud.police.uk/ 

However, if a fraud or other crime is in progress, and/or you are in fear for yourself or someone else, and/or there is evidence in situ that could be damaged/destroyed, please phone 999 immediately. 

Otherwise, report non-fraud crime online, or find out about other ways to report a crime at: https://www.hampshire.police.uk/ro/report/ocr/af/how-to-report-a-crime/

If you would like to report a crime anonymously, please contact: https://crimestoppers-uk.org/ or phone 0800 555 111

If you've been affected by a crime please contact Victim Care Hub for free, confidential, support:  https://www.hampshireiowvictimcare.co.uk/  or phone 0808 178 1641

If you’ve received a phishing email please report it to your email provider and/or forward it to report@phishing.gov.uk 

If you’ve received unwanted phone calls or texts from people you think are trying to scam you, but you haven’t engaged with them, please forward the text/phone number to 7726 or your phone provider.

Thank you – Fraud Safeguarding Team