Action Fraud revamps website so people can report cold-call scams

Action Fraud has created a page on its website that lets people report the ongoing problem of PC cold-call scams.

During these cold-call scams, people are targeted by companies claiming to work for, or on behalf of Microsoft or the victim's internet service provider (ISP).

Giving this fraud a specific category on the Action Fraud website reflects the seriousness with which the authorities have begun to take this fraud.

The information that the national fraud-reporting agency run by the National Fraud Authority will collect will be passed on to the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau (NFIB).

This agency, run by the City of London Police, will then collate the reports, phone numbers involved, money lost and web addresses these fake companies give.

It can then give the information to the relevant police forces and agencies.

"It was difficult for us and the NFIB to know how many reports we were getting about this fraud because they were being categorised in different ways. We now have a specific set of questions for this fraud which people can answer online.

"It will take about 15-20 minutes to complete the questionnaire. However, if people want to report this using the helpline instead they can on 0300 123 2040," Action Fraud told us.

We first began reporting this fraud in February 2010. The names of the companies, such as Click2support or Windows Service Center constantly changed, but all are consistent in the scam.

They tell the victim their PC has been infected with malicious software. They ask the person to turn the PC on, saying Microsoft or an ISP has informed them the person's PC has been infected with malicious software.

They then try to con them into paying for technical services and software. We both videoed and recorded one of these companies after letting it take over one of our computers.

Although most of these fake companies are based abroad; usually calling from New Delhi or Calcutta in India, they are using UK telephone numbers.

Calls to these numbers are then directed overseas. But it is possible they have people working for them in this country as well.

The information gathered by Action Fraud will also help the NFIB find out the scale of the problem and companies leasing the landlines.

This could include handing information not only to local forces but a police agency such as the Serious Organised Crime Agency, which works often works with police forces outside the UK.