POLICE are warning people of a telephone scam after fraudsters posing as an internet provider have conned residents out of money.

A man contacted five victims in Runcorn, Warrington, Chester and Crewe to tell them their modem was not compatible with their computer and they owed the provider £200.

The Runcorn victim was contacted on July 11.

The fraudster then requested the victim logged onto their bank account to transfer the money before being told a bigger sum had been transferred instead by mistake, which they needed to repay.

As a result of this two of the victims paid a substantial amount of money back to the fraudster.

Peter Lawless of Cheshire Police’s economic crime unit said: “I want to remind residents to be vigilant when receiving calls from people who claim they are from an internet provider and to bear in mind the following advice.

• Don′t be afraid to put the phone down on someone if you are unsure about handing over details.

• Banks never call and ask for your four-digit card Pin or ask you to withdraw money to hand over to them or transfer money to another account.

• Never assume a caller is genuine just because they hold some information about you. Criminals may already have some basic information, such as a name, address and account details to try to make the call appear legitimate.

• Always be wary of cold callers who suggest you hang up the phone and call them back.

• If in doubt ask for the officer′s name, collar number and station and then hang up. Using a different phone, as the caller may still be linked to yours, call 101 to check the identity of the officer.

• Alternatively, if you do not have a second phone then you could try phoning a relative or friend, that way you know that the offender is not still on the line.

• Remember that it takes two people to terminate a call so try and use a different phone line if you are asked to ring back.

If you think you′ve already been a victim of this scam, contact your bank or card company immediately.

Anyone who is a victim of this scam should contact action fraud on 0300 123 2040 and Cheshire Police on 101.