NEWS: Warning issued as football clubs targeted by scammers
Football clubs in South Yorkshire are being warned to be vigilant, after reports of scammers targeting teams for financial gain.
Clubs of all levels, including grassroots teams, are being asked to step up their digital security and be take notice of unusual emails or phone calls.
Football officer, PC Brett Thompson, said: “This scam involves criminals posing as senior managers, owners or chief executives of football clubs then asking other members of the management team to provide bank details or vouchers for ‘club purposes’.
“Once details have been handed over, they would then be used for fraudulent purposes, financial exploitation or theft.
“So for example, a club secretary might receive an email or a phone call from someone they believe to be the club owner, asking for bank details to transfer some cash.
“These attempts are being made by email and telephone calls, so it’s really important that clubs are using secure platforms to contact each other – and know who they are speaking to.
“So far three incidents have been reported to us in South Yorkshire, it’s really important that clubs are aware of this and also share this information with people affiliated with the club.
“Thankfully each of these attempted scams has been detected before any damage can be done, let’s keep it that way.”
If you are concerned about any suspicious contact you may have had, please contact us on 101.
PC Thompson added: “The last thing we want with the long-anticipated return of grassroots football and hopefully at some point fans returning to the grounds, would be for any club to fall victim to criminal activity.”
Source – Yorkshire Police
