Man duped out of €10,000 in new internet scam

A 72-year-old man paid €10,000 for an invoice sent to him by email which turned out to be  fraudulent, police said on Tuesday.

The man reported to police that on June 16 he received an email from a foreign company with which he cooperates. The sender asked the complainant to pay an outstanding invoice to a new bank account.

The 72-year-old paid the invoice, amounting to €10,000, through a  bank transfer, however, a few days later, the company contacted the complainant, stating that the payment had not been made.

Investigation revealed that the e-mail address from which the 72-year-old received the first message was slightly different from the actual e-mail address of the company with which he cooperates.

Police note that this type of internet fraud has been reported several times and concerns fraud through invoices and other documents, during which, third parties manage to access e-mails, and interfere in the communication between two traders.

They then approach the company pretending to be its supplier or service provider and request that the information on future invoice payments is changed and that any new payments be made according to the new data ( which belong to the scammer).

The case is being investigated by the financial crime unit, which repeated its appeal to the public to be careful when engaging in internet transactions.