The Federal Police Commissioner-General victim of identity theft

Some citizens receive emails signed with the names of heads of police or judicial institutions, including the commissioner general himself. This is an attempted scam. The technique is not new but continues to be used. Beware!




Commissioner-General theft of identity

 

People and institutions that are publicly exposed are more affected than others by identity theft. The Federal Police, and in particular the commissioner general, are no exception...

If he does not perceive the attempted fraud, there is a significant risk for the citizen to be trapped.

 

What scam?

The emails often take the form of a message from a senior official of the "Brigade for the Protection of Minors". He reports illegal consultations of (child)pornography sites and threatens legal action. A solution is proposed to avoid them: the payment of a large fine. 

The names of the current commissioner general Eric Snoeck and the former commissioner, Marc De Mesmaeker, are used. But the scammers also impersonate other police and judicial officials.

Some emails use the subject line "Your summons" and claim to inform you that you have committed various offences, or even sent photos of a sexual nature to minors. The sender says that you have to pay a fine, or else you will be prosecuted. Unfortunately, some citizens sometimes pay this so-called fine. The money then goes directly into the crooks' pockets...

 

What advice?

It is recommended that you report fraudulent emails received in your mailbox (on gmail, next to "Reply", click on "More", then "Report as phishing"). But it will unfortunately be easy for scammers to create new addresses to keep insisting again, hoping that you will be tricked by mistake. 

Vigilance therefore remains the best remedy.

We remind you of some tips and rules:

  • The police will never send you  a fine by email.• Check the address of the sender of the email: if it is fancy or strange (policefédérale@hsruhaw.com or federalpolice@gmail.com), it is an attempt at fraud. The police never use a free email address like gmail, for example.
  • If it is a question of urgency, that you are asked to react quickly and that you are put under pressure, it is an indication of fraud;
  • Never reply to an email that seems surprising, or even suspicious.
  • An email that contains spelling or grammatical mistakes, or that is not written professionally, is suspicious. However, they are perfecting themselves with the use of artificial intelligence, so beware...
  • Check the accuracy of the information via search engines. Some sites such as https://factchecknow.online/ or https://www.security.org/scams/prevention/ can enlighten you as to the existence of a scam.
  • Never give out your personal or banking details by phone or email at the request of a third party. Report fraudulent emails in one click via the Safe on Web website: https://www.safeonweb.be/en/
  • Send a copy of the fraudulent email to the following address: suspect@safeonweb.be. Then delete the message.

 

Victim of a scam via a fake email?

  • Contact your bank and CardStop (078 170 170) as soon as possible in order to block any financial transactions that may still be blocked, and possibly your bank cards. The telephone numbers of the banking institutions are included in this Febelfin document.
  • Contact the Local Police to file a complaint.
  • Change your passwords and run an anti-virus software, if you think you have installed malware.

 

Want to know more?

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