Estonian scammers ask woman for 79 cents, then steal over 400 euros
In Häädemeeste municipality, a 56-year-old woman waiting for a parcel fell for a phishing message and lost nearly 420 euros. Estonian police have opened a criminal case and are reminding the public of safety rules.
On Monday, September 14, Estonian police opened a criminal investigation into a fraud case in Häädemeeste municipality. A 56-year-old woman received a message claiming that delivery service Smartpost had failed to deliver a parcel to her.
The message contained a link offering to select a new delivery method. Since the woman was genuinely expecting a parcel, she clicked the link, where she was asked to pay 79 cents. After completing the transaction, she discovered that almost 420 euros had been withdrawn from her bank account.
Police advice
Estonian police are urging residents to immediately end any call if contacted by scammers. Law enforcement also reminded the public of several key safety principles:
- never share your PIN codes with anyone — government agencies and banks never ask for them;
- do not give your home address to strangers;
- do not carry out financial transactions with unfamiliar people or hand over money to them.
Police are asking anyone who has encountered similar fraud attempts to report it to kelmused@politsei.ee, including screenshots and recordings of conversations, to assist the investigation.
