Police are urging people to be aware of an old scam reappearing, involving cold-callers who claim to be police officers.
Fresh reports about the scam have been made in recent days, according to Detective Senior Sergeant Ryan Bunting.
"Unfortunately, at least two elderly Aucklanders have been conned out of tens of thousands of dollars," he said.
Scammers are cold-calling predominantly landlines, posing as officers, and even providing a fake ID or badge number.
"This person will carry on and provide a reason for their call: either they are investigating fake bank notes, or that your credit card has been cloned," said Bunting.
"As part of this scam, they will ask you to withdraw money from a nearby bank to be collected or ask you to provide further financial or banking information to aid their investigation," he added.
It is not legitimate, and is a scam call, Bunting stressed.
Two people in Tāmaki Makaurau/Auckland reported falling victim to the scam to police this week.
"Both victims withdrew cash from a bank and handed this over to someone who arrived at their door to collect it under the fake cover story," said Bunting.
He said the scammers have ruined the victims' trust and good-will, but investigators are ensuring they have support.
Officers will legitimately contact people on occasion, as part of their duties, he added.
Police want people to spread the word to family and friends - particularly the elderly.
"If you have had the unfortunate position of being a victim to this scam and have not reported this, we encourage you to report this to Police," Bunting said.
Police will never ask the public for bank details, pin numbers, passwords, or ask for money to be withdrawn.
