Fraudsters posing as gardaí seek payment of ‘fines’ for ‘pornographic’ offences

Gardaí have warned people to be aware of a new scam in which unsuspecting victims are told they have accessed explicit and criminal content online and are warned they face prosecution. The fraudsters are posing as Garda members and demand an admission of guilt and agreement to pay a fine to be sent by return of email.

While other similar scams circulated earlier this year, the latest one is more polished in appearance. It also includes a request for a form of identification to be scanned and supplied along with the admission of guilt and agreement to pay a fine and thus avoid the case going to court.

Garda sources said the agreement to pay the fine would likely be followed by the fraudsters sending another email with instructions for payment of the fine into a bank account they control. However, they were also concerned anyone sending identification could have their personal details used by the fraudsters to open bank accounts in their names and then used to conduct other criminal activity.

One source said while many people would quickly realise the correspondence was not from the Garda, others, especially some vulnerable or older people, would be more susceptible to falling victim to the scam.

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The letter, sent in pdf format, is a mock-up of official Garda correspondence, with letterhead and featuring a stamp on behalf of the force and Garda Commissioner Drew Harris. It is claimed the recipient of the email was identified for investigation as part of a Garda operation, aided by the PSNI and Interpol, into images of child sexual abuse and unspecified forms of pornography accessed online.

The correspondence claims the recipient was identified for investigation as part of a major online surveillance operation monitoring content on “pornographic sites, dating sites, social networks”.

The recipient of the email is warned they face prosecution, involving details of the charges against them being aired in a public court, if they do not opt to handle the matter by effectively admitting their guilt and paying a fine, in one case more than €5,000.

In reply to queries, Garda Headquarters, Phoenix Park, Dublin, said it was aware of online scams by fraudsters posing as Garda members.

“This correspondence states that the individual could be prosecuted in relation to investigations into child pornography, paedophilia, cyber pornography, sex trafficking or some similar ‘judicial’ claim,” it said. “Gardaí are advising the public that An Garda Síochána does not and will not make contact with a person in this way.”

It said people should not respond to any unsolicited email seeking personal, financial or security information and never click on a link or attachment in an unsolicited email. If any recipient of a email purporting to come from the Garda had concerns about its authenticity, they should verify it, but not with the sender.