POLICE are warning residents after an elderly Alloa man lost a large amount of cash to scammers.

The 84-year-old received an unsolicited phone call from a person with a strong foreign accent, purporting to be calling from a company he had dealt with in the past.

He was told he would be given a refund and was kept on the phone for several hours, while the caller asked for his personal details, bank account numbers and passwords.

Police say that due to the “persuasive and constant nature” of the callers questioning the gentleman, he eventually gave most of these details.

The force is advising people not to respond to unsolicited emails and calls, asking for personal information like name, date of birth or national insurance number.

PC users are advised to keep their security software up to date, use a firewall and spam filters.

WiFi networks should be encrypted, never enter passwords and personal data on a public network.

Never click on an email link from an unknown source, opening malicious emails can infect the computer with a virus, allowing criminals to remotely take control.

Avoid risky websites, including supposed investment ones. Always change default passwords at the earliest opportunity, avoid easy passwords like dates of birth.

Banks and other financial institutions never send emails asking to verify bank details by clicking on a link.