Police are warning residents to be wary of phone scammers threatening people with police arrest.
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A Warrnambool resident said she received the “frightening” phone call while at home on Tuesday.
“I let the call go to voicemail but listened to it as it came through and it was this robotic voice that said if I didn’t ring them back straight away, I would be arrested this afternoon,” she said.
“It frightened the hell out of me. I rang the police right away but I worry about people who might be so scared they ring back and then it asks for their credit card details and things like that.”
The victim said her home number was private and on the Do Not Call Register.
Warrnambool Police Sergeant Jarrod Chatfield said anyone who receives unusual calls from unknown numbers should hang up straight away.
“If you don’t recognise the number then don’t answer the call,” he said.
“And if you do answer, do not respond. Hang up the phone immediately and don’t call the number back.”
Sergeant Chatfield said if police were going to arrest someone, they wouldn’t leave an automated voicemail.
“It’s important to make aware people of these sort of scams so that they know what to do if they receive them,” he said.
Sergeant Chatfield said all phone scams should be reported to the Australian Cybercrime Online Reporting Network (ACORN).
ACORN provides information on how to recognise and avoid common forms of cybercrime such as hacking, online scams, online fraud, identity theft and attacks on computer systems.
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