Online scams, hoax text messages and phishing are becoming increasingly common in Sweden.
In the spring of 2024, several large companies and authorities sent out warnings to their customers to make them aware of the scam attempts.
Last week, DHL warned of a new type of fraud attempt, where the scammers entered the recipient’s existing SMS conversation with the transport company.
– Technically, there is no way to curb this either for us or others whose names are being used, said Pär PihlqvistCommunication Lead at DHL Sweden, to News24 about the hoax text.
READ MORE: Have you received this SMS? DHL warns of cunning scams
Woman thought she won money on the Postcode Lottery
Another company exploited by fraudsters in the spring of 2024 is the Postcode Lottery.
Nyheter24 has previously written about an elderly woman in Skurup who was called and informed that she had won over SEK 37,000 in the well-known lottery. Only after she gave up her bank details did she begin to suspect that it was a scam.
READ MORE: Here’s the fraudsters’ new trick – Stina got a fake pregnancy test
How to expose the fraudsters from the “Postcode Lottery”
The woman is not alone in having fallen victim to the same kind of fraud.
In an interview with Today’s news tells Towe Häggcrime prevention coordinator at the fraud section in Region Stockholm, that there is only one smart way to find out if the person on the other end of the phone is trying to trick you.
– You hang up and call back, she tells the newspaper.
The best thing is to look up the real number yourself, in this case the Postal Code Lottery, and contact the company that way.
Find out who called using Swish
Another clever trick that can reveal whether the phone number really goes to a company or a private person is to try swishing the person a penny.
Just before the step where you have to approve the transfer with Bank ID, you can see the name of the recipient.
Reasonably, it should not be possible to swipe the real Postcode Lottery at all – but the number should in any case not be registered in the name of a private person.
READ MORE: Smart trick: How to find out who called from an unknown number