Reiko Akutagawa, Special Crime Prevention Supporter, Conducts Public Awareness at Hokkaido Police's "Dōmin no Tsudoi"

"Stop! Ole-Ole Scam 47 ~Operation Family Bond~" Project Team (Abbreviation: SOS47) has been conducting countermeasures and public awareness activities in cooperation with the police departments of all 47 prefectures since 2018, to easily convey knowledge and prevention measures regarding special fraud, which is increasingly causing damage nationwide, and to prevent such damage.

Reiko Akutagawa, Special Crime Prevention Supporter for the National Police Agency, participated as a special guest in the special fraud prevention event "Dōmin no Tsudoi" held by the Hokkaido Police, and conducted public awareness activities.

Supporter Akutagawa: "Scammers use sophisticated methods to mentally corner victims."

At the beginning of the event, Supporter Akutagawa shared her experience of falling victim to a "fake police scam," explaining the tactics to the audience. She described how scammers, posing as police officers, knew her family composition, which was not publicly disclosed, and how the phone number, while starting with a '+' sign, ended with '0110,' a police code, illustrating the cunningly devised deception.

She also touched upon the aggressive tone of the fake police officers, conveying the terror of their methods by stating, "Scammers use sophisticated methods to mentally corner victims."

Supporter Akutagawa: "For scam call prevention, please block incoming international calls."

Towards the end of the event, she highlighted several key points of fake police scams, issuing a warning: "Real police officers will never ask you to use video calls or discuss money. If such a conversation arises, suspect a scam immediately."

Furthermore, as effective countermeasures, she introduced the procedure for "applying to suspend international calls" and recommended apps from the National Police Agency. She explained, "For landlines, by applying for this service, you can block calls from overseas that start with a '+' sign. For mobile phones, by downloading these apps, you can block calls from numbers used in scams. Both are free and easy to do. I urge everyone to take these measures as a countermeasure against scam calls."

【Event Overview】 ■Event Name: Hokkaido Police "Dōmin no Tsudoi"

Date: May 28, Reiwa 8 (Thursday)

Venue: Kyosai Hall

Attendees: Reiko Akutagawa, Special Crime Prevention Supporter, National Police Agency