The victim was scammed after being interested in finding an employee for
fill a job vacancy through the social network
Under the pretext of formalizing the contract and the transfer procedures of the employee
to the island of Gran Canaria, benefited from a transfer of 9.000 euros
The Civil Guard of Gran Canaria, within the framework of the operation mascachises, on August 20, 2024 proceeded to investigate a citizen residing in the town of Alicante, for a crime of bank fraud, who had deceived the victim into transferring the amount of 9.000 euros as management expenses for his move to Gran Canaria for work reasons.
Knowledge of the facts
The Las Palmas Civil Guard's specialised unit for combating cybercrime became aware of the incident following a complaint filed by a citizen residing on the island of Gran Canaria, who, when interested in hiring a person to care for family members, located a potential candidate through a well-known social network who met the necessary requirements to perform these functions.
After learning about the conditions of the job, the alleged candidate and “user” of the social network told the complainant that she was even willing to move from abroad to the island of Gran Canaria, but that to do so she needed to complete a series of administrative procedures to regularize her status in Spain, so she convinced the injured party to make a transfer to a Spanish bank account.
Investigations collected
Given the suspicion that a fraud had been committed, the Civil Guard began an investigation based on a detailed analysis of the means used by the alleged perpetrator, the form of contact, the social engineering methodology used and the analysis of financial risks, coordinating with the bank itself to obtain data on the transfers made by the injured party, thus being able to recover a large part of the amount initially defrauded.
With the results obtained from the analysis and the actions taken, thanks to the police collaboration mechanisms, it was possible to identify, locate and investigate the beneficiary of the fraudulent transfers made, who is a male citizen, of legal age and resident in the town of Alicante, directly related to the fraud perpetrated.
Self-protection tips
In all crimes related to new technologies by the Gran Canaria Team, we remind you that, through social networks, extreme caution must be taken in contacts and communications with third parties, distrusting extravagant or implausible stories and taking into account that we do not know the true identity of the people with whom we interact. For all these reasons, it is recommended that bank details, personal or work documentation not be shared and in the case of job offers, it is recommended to rely on specialized companies in the sector or with the public employment service itself. However, if you want to do it in person, make sure that you are contacting the real person behind the profile of the user of the social network with whom you are dealing, through personal interviews, either physical or virtual.
