Mason Moore | Hinckley Reporter | 4 December 2022

A HINCKLEY and Bosworth resident has warned of a ‘very convincing’ scam email from scammers who were trying to make people pay up to find tracking details of parcels.

That is according to Burbage PCSO Darren Stretton in an update which was posted to his most recent Burbage policing newsletter.

He explained that the resident, who wished not to be named, had purchased some items online from a legitimate website where they received a receipt which included a parcel tracking number.

However, just five days later, they received a bogus email from scammers claiming to be from a site named ‘Parcelfound’ with the same tracking number as the legitimate purchase stressing that they need to pay £1 to track and locate their parcel.

The resident was almost duped by the scam as “they layout and information on the page looked ‘completely legitimate’” upon first glance.

Thankfully, they did not enter any of their sensitive banking details as family members helped to check over the email after they raised their suspicions.

They later contacted the company who they bought the items off who were able to officially confirm that the email from ‘Parcelfound’ had been a hoax all along.

If you believe you have been a victim of online fraud, you can report it to the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), on report@phishing.gov.uk.

Those who think they have been duped by scams are being encouraged to contact Action Fraud UK ‘immediately’, on 0300 123 2040.

Action Fraud can further be made aware of their scams through their website, where victims, witnesses, or businesses are able to report fraud or cybercrime.