On October 9, 2025, a resident of Karkonosze County who had fallen victim to fraud and lost more than PLN 15,000 reported to the Kowary Police Station. Police: -- That day, the man received a call from a woman who introduced herself as a bank employee. She informed him that his personal data had allegedly been taken over by unauthorized persons and that the funds held in his account were seriously at risk.

The woman claimed that the account would soon be blocked and that the only way to secure the money was its immediate withdrawal and deposit into a so-called secure account using BLIK codes.

The supposed bank employee instructed the caller not to hang up under any circumstances and to follow all her instructions precisely. What is more, he was told not to tell anyone at the bank why he was withdrawing the money. The reason? One of the institution’s employees was allegedly stealing customers’ data.

During the call, a man joined the conversation and introduced himself as a police officer. Police officers: -- To make the entire story seem credible, he confirmed that the woman’s actions were legal and carried out “in cooperation with the Police.”

Convinced that the conversation was genuine, the victim followed the instructions and transferred the money using BLIK codes. In this way, he lost more than PLN 15,000.

Police officers remind everyone and urge caution:

Officers never call citizens asking them to withdraw money, hand over cash, or make a transfer or deposit into any account. The Police also do not cooperate with banks in this way and do not order any financial transactions.

If you receive a call from someone claiming to be a bank employee or police officer, stay calm, do not follow their instructions, end the call immediately, and contact your bank’s helpline or the nearest Police unit yourself.

Remember that criminals often exploit emotions, time pressure and fear to manipulate their victims. Let us not allow them to do so. Anyone can become a target of fraudsters, so it is worth talking to loved ones—especially older people—and reminding them never to hand over money or personal data to people who contact them by phone.

They add:

Let us exercise caution when someone calls and introduces themselves as a representative of a bank, prosecutor’s office or the Police. Let us not make hasty decisions. If there are any doubts, you can always verify the caller’s identity by independently calling the institution the fraudster allegedly called from.

Remember that each of our financial security depends largely on our vigilance and common sense.