Almere man arrested for stealing €130,000 in phishing scam

A 21-year-old man from Almere was arrested by the Midden-Nederland police this week on suspicion of phishing. His bank alarmed authorities after noticing suspicious transactions worth more than 400 thousand euros.

The man is suspected to be part of a phishing scam. He allegedly posed as the social housing site, Woningnet, and asked potential victims to renew their registrations via a text message or email. Registration could supposedly be renewed with a simple click on a payment link, but instead, the link gave the criminal access to the victims’ bank accounts.

Over 100 people in the Netherlands fell to have fallen prey to the phishing messages, the police said. According to investigators, the 21-year-old robbed victims of more than 130 thousand euros in the last months of 2020.

Police warn the public never to react to messages asking for your personal passwords or to send pictures of your bank card or ID. Reputable institutions will never ask for any of these via email or telephone.

Should you have accidentally clicked on a phishing link, contact your bank immediately. It is also wise to get your computer, tablet and cell phone checked for spyware.

If in doubt of the credibility of a link, you can get it checked on the website checkjelinkje.nl.