Warning of 'sophisticated scams' as Jersey farmer loses £10,000 to fraudsters

A Jersey farmer who lost £10,000 after he took a call from someone claiming to be his bank is warning islanders of sophisticated scamming techniques.

Ollie Griggs passed a verification code to a scammer over the phone, giving them access to his bank account where they drained £10,000.

He is just one of many islanders who've been scammed out of more than £4.4 million this year, according to the Jersey Financial Crimes Unit (JFCU).

It's almost a £1 million increase from 2023.

Ollie says it only briefly occurred to him that the phone call might have been a scammer, and he believed they were genuinely calling to help.

The JFCU say that impersonation is taking the most money off of Islanders in total.

Ollie explains: "It's made me a lot more cautious, a lot more willing to question, [and] a lot more willing to say: 'Wait - hang on a second.'

"I'm just a lot more willing to take a step back, and question, and make sure that I'm doing the right thing."

Ollie adds that whilst he feels "a bit stupid", he hopes telling his story will make people more aware that fraudsters are becoming increasingly sophisticated.

He wants to stop others from becoming targets, particularly over the Christmas period.

His story comes as the Jersey Cyber Security Centre (JCSC) warns that shoppers are heavily targeted by scammers in the weeks leading to Christmas.

Matt Palmer, Director of the JCSC, says when people are focused on buying gifts online and having a good time with their families, it provides a prime opportunity for scammers.

He says: "It's very important that we look very carefully at what we see online, that we don't click unless we are absolutely sure, and that we exercise a degree of cynicism and caution.

"Goodwill is not universal, and not everybody is Santa Claus."

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