Overview

• Essen police say a 92-year-old handed over cash and jewelry worth a high five-figure sum after a caller posed as a lawyer and a courier collected the valuables at her care home.
• An 85-year-old in Forstinning surrendered about €30,000 in cash and jewelry to a man after a fake police call claimed her relative caused a deadly crash, and investigators are seeking witnesses.
• In Wittenberge, a 61-year-old lost several thousand euros to an online scammer who impersonated a celebrity and demanded express shipping fees for a package that never arrived.
• A 77-year-old from Austria’s Krems district withdrew €12,200 after a caller claimed to be a prosecutor and alleged her son faced jail over a fatal accident, and the case remains under investigation.
• Federal data show online-banking fraud cases have risen roughly 50% in five years, and a law firm reports banks often delay reimbursements or offer little help, forcing victims toward litigation.