POLICE in Dorset are warning people to beware of an email scam about friends stranded overseas.
The Bridport Town Safer Neighbourhood Team says that some people in West Dorset have been targeted by the hoaxers.
A spokesman said: “Residents in the area are receiving emails from a friend or colleague claiming that he or she is stranded in a foreign country and desperately needs their help to get home.
“The email originates from the friend’s real email account and may even include the same email signature that the friend usually uses when emailing. However, the emails are a clever scheme by internet criminals designed to trick people into sending them money.”
The police spokesman said: “People are urged to be wary of any email that asks you to transfer money, even if it appears to come from one of your friends.”
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