A new case of the well-known electronic invoice fraud is being investigated by the Police, which reiterates its appeals to the public to always be careful in their transactions.
The case was reported to the Police by a company manager in Limassol, according to whom his company received an email message from a supplier company with which they have been collaborating in recent years, which appears to have been fraudulent, requesting that the supplier company's invoices be paid into a different bank account than the usual one.
The complainant was convinced and proceeded to pay an invoice to the supplier company, amounting to $9,745, through the new bank account. However, he realized that he had fallen victim to fraud when, upon contacting the supplier company, he was informed that the invoice had not been paid.
The Financial Crime Investigation Office of TAE Limassol is investigating the case.
In light of this case, the Police remind the public that in cases where such messages are received, before proceeding with the payment of invoices, to always verify the message by telephone with the partners to whom the payment is to be made. For this communication, a telephone number should be used with which the two parties have been in contact again or which is listed in messages exchanged between them in their previous transactions.
Company owners or managers are urged to inform their company staff about this specific form of fraud and to implement verification procedures for payment requests they receive.
More information about this specific form of fraud, as well as advice on how the public can avoid fraud, is published on the Police website.
