Overview

• Scammers approach holidaymakers claiming they’re lost and ask to use Google Maps, prompting victims to unlock their phones.
• Once seized, devices are passed to accomplices who change passwords and swiftly transfer funds from linked accounts.
• British expat Michelle Baker, who has lived in Benidorm for over 40 years, shared her experience to warn visitors about this non-violent but lucrative twist on phone theft.
• Earlier this year, Policia Nacional arrested two suspects aged 19 and 20 after a stolen phone was used to steal £16,000 from a British tourist’s accounts.
• The UK Foreign Office urges travellers to secure valuables, keep phones out of sight and escort disoriented strangers to nearby hotels instead of handing over devices.