Councillor John Bell, who represents Doon Valley, was contacted by one of his constituents who had received a phone call supposedly from Sky TV, asking for her bank details.

Thankfully she instantly realised that it was not a genuine request and told the caller in no uncertain terms that she would not be giving put such details — predictably the number had been withheld when they tried to trace it.

Mr Bell said: “In this case the lady has received marketing calls from Sky in the past and her suspicions were aroused by the scammer’s tone but I am concerned that some people could be taken in by the phone call.” Sky’s security team confirmed to the Chronicle that the call was most definitely a scam, and advise anyone concerned whether or not a call really is from the company to hang up and call them on 03442 414141.

A spokeswoman added: “In terms of this particular scam, it’s worth noting that we would never cold call a customer to ask for their bank details and our advisors are trained on what to do when customers contact us to report alleged fraudulent activity.

“This included incidents where the fraudster claims affiliation with Sky, and we have a robust security system in place which means we log complaints from customers relating to fraudulent or criminal activity committed by third parties.” East Ayrshire Council’s Trading standards Department is urging anyone with concerns to call them on 01563 576602 for further help and advice.

“The Sky scam has been ongoing for some time and although the callers may seem plausible, these calls are in no way related to legitimate business.

“The caller is trying to obtain valuable financial information from unsuspecting householders,” added a council spokeswoman.

“The advice to residents is simple — never give out personal information such as bank details over the phone to a cold caller.” Constable Peter Brown, from Police Scotland Safer Communities Unit, said that genuine businesses or organisations will never telephone and ask for personal or financial information.

He added: “If someone calls you unsolicited, take their details and under no circumstances pass over sensitive bank information, such as credit card or bank card details, over the telephone.”