An elderly woman from East Ayrshire has been duped into sharing sensitive information with scammers, allowing them to raid her bank account.

The thieves initially sent a text message instructing her to follow a link for a Covid pass and provide her contact details.

They then followed up with a phone call from a person pretending to be from her bank and further details were taken allowing access to her account where a large sum of money was taken without her knowledge.

Police Scotland are reminding people to remain vigilant after the fraudsters scammed the money out of the elderly woman from the Catrine area, which was reported to police last week.

Sergeant David Markin, the Local Authority Liaison officer for East Ayrshire Council said: ”Fraudsters will contact victims using a variety of methods in order to gain their personal information so they can access their bank accounts and anyone can be fooled as the perpetrators are clever in their approach.

"If you receive an unexpected phone call, if they are telling you to respond quickly or to keep it a secret and asking you to send money, this is a scam."

"Never give your personal information such as bank/card details to anyone over the phone and never transfer money to them or arrange a payment collection.”

If you receive a suspicious call, end it immediately and if claiming to be your bank or broadband provider, phone them back yourself on the information provided by your bank correspondence.

Anyone with concerns about crime in their area is encouraged to contact Police Scotland by calling 101 (in an emergency always dial 999).