Police warn of AFP scam that leaves victims “distraught”

No one likes getting notice of a traffic infringement but one Queensland woman saw straight through the bogus notice she received and is warning others to do the same.

Gaye McGrath from the Sunshine Coast received the email below, which appeared to be from the Australian Federal Police:

The email told her she had been fined for negligent driving and had to pay a $150 fine immediately.

Fortunately, Ms McGrath was confident in her driving ability and recognised the email as a scam. She printed it out and posted the image to a Community Board on Facebook. Others had also received the same, reports the Brisbane Times.

“Be careful… I got one this morning. I also had one a few months ago that was a virus,” one person commented.

Another said: “The trouble is that it really frightens people. I got one and dismissed it. A friend got one and was distraught. Hated seeing her in this state.”

The letter masks a common scam: if people click on any of the links, their computer is infected with malware, they can’t access their emails and they are asked to pay to reactivate them.

Cyber crime operations commander McLean said many people “had been compromised” and asked anyone who received the email to “delete it immediately”.

The AFP says this is a scam that “did the rounds” last year and are disappointed to see it has “reared its ugly head again”.

Have you received anything like this? Would you recognise this as a scam? Remember to pass this on so others don’t get caught out.