John Nicolson, Member of Parliament for Ochil and South Perthshire today called on constituents to be more vigilant with regards to the growing number of scams in the constituency.
The National Cyber Security Centre has taken down more scams in the past year than in the accumulation of the previous three years, and cited coronavirus-related cybercrime as fuelling the increase. The Citizens Advice Bureau Scotland is seeking to raise awareness of scams and to educate the public on how to avoid and report them.
According to this year’s Recorded Crime in Scotland survey, cases of fraud have risen 63 per cent from April 2020 to March 2021, compared with the previous year. Between April 2019 and March 2020, there were 10,957 cases of fraud committed in Scotland. The figure has risen to 17,818 between April 2020 and March 2021.
Urging his constituents to be vigilant and to consult with Citizens Advice Bureau Scotland if they believe they are being or have been scammed, John Nicolson said: “Many scams can be difficult to recognise and, as lockdown has forced more and more of us online for longer periods of time, online scams have become more common and more pernicious.
“From e-mails and texts pretending to be the NHS or the Government or people knocking at your door asking for donations for non-existent charities, constituents can seek advice or report a scam to the Citizens Advice Bureau via their free helpline on 0808 250 5050 or via the webchat option on the CAB website,” he continued.