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Face Mask Scam.

Popeye

By Popeye
in The Broadscot Lounge

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Popeye

Popeye

Posted
Posted

I have just received a message from my local Neighbourhood Watch,

They are warning us about people knocking on doors and stopping people in the street on the pretext of selling them special face masks and offering you to try one on to make sure the fitting is right. The masks contain a drug which quickly overpowers the wearer and they are burgled or robbed in the street.

Take care everybody, be safe and have a Merry Christmas.

Regards,

 

Popeye.

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ExSurveyor

ExSurveyor

Posted
Posted

Please be aware that this warning appears to be a hoax that has been circulating for over a year.

 

 

Reuters,

 Media users have claimed criminals are going door to door handing out chemically doused masks in order to commit robbery during the new coronavirus pandemic. (here)  

The message, which has been shared in different countries, claims the thieves are pretending to be part of a local government initiative for distributing masks. It says that when worn the chemical masks “knock out” the victim so they can be robbed.

One example of the message from a UK Facebook user has been shared 1,400 times. It reads:

“WARNING A new thing circulating now. People are going door to door handing out masks. They say it’s a new initiative from local government. They ask you to please put it on to see if it fits. It’s doused with chemicals which knocks you out cold. They then rob you!! Please DO NOT accept masks from strangers. Remember friends, it’s a critical time and people are desperate, the crime rate will spike. Please be cautious & safe!!”

 

There is no evidence that this crime has taken place in the UK or elsewhere. Online searches do not bring up any crime reports, formal police warnings or news articles warning the public of the attacks.

The UK’s Greater Manchester Police told Reuters that while they could not definitively say the crime had not happened without being given a specific time, date and location, they did not have ‘any knowledge of these attacks.’ The South Wales Police likewise said they ‘had no such reports’ of them happening.

The message has been repeated word for word in posts shared across in at least three different countries - the UK, South Africa and the U.S.  (here) (here). This duplication is a feature of chain messages, which often lack key details or any indication of source - as here.

While there is no evidence of this particular crime, the UK’s Metropolitan Police force is advising the public to be vigilant around potential scams by “criminals looking to cash in on people’s fears about coronavirus

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floydraser

floydraser

Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, grendel said:

it is most refreshing to see that unlike the majority of other news services, Reuters has a fact checking department, personally I could wish every news service including the BBC could adopt this service before publishing.

Probably the only place we will ever see "fact checking" and "the BBC" in the same sentence.

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