Phone scam in Sagunto: fake calls from the City Council ask for money and data
Sagunto's Local Police warn of calls in which someone poses as the City Council to ask for money or personal data. The council asks for neither over the phone.
Sagunto's Local Police have picked up on fraudulent phone calls in recent days and have issued a warning to residents. The caller claims to be phoning on behalf of the City Council and tries either to obtain the victim's personal information or to get them to hand over a sum of money.
The municipal force stresses the one fact that exposes the trick at once: Sagunto City Council does not ask for personal data or payments by phone. So if the phone rings and someone with that pretext demands either, the right response is to hand over nothing and make no payment.
This kind of scam has a technical name. INCIBE, Spain's national cybersecurity institute, calls it vishing: a phone call in which the other person impersonates a service or a company. Here the impersonated body is the local administration itself, which lends an air of legitimacy and makes people more willing to answer confidently when their own council seems to be calling.
According to the same body, the aim of these calls is for the victim to provide personal or banking details. That matches the local warning exactly: the scammers want information on one side and money on the other.
For anyone who gets a call like this, INCIBE gives a clear rule: at the slightest doubt, do not give the information requested and end the call. It adds two practical tips. First, block the number so it cannot call again. Second, never act on impulse, even if the caller is in a hurry or sounds sure of themselves.
The Local Police also ask residents to report any such attempt to the authorities. The warning has been circulated precisely so that other neighbours are not caught off guard and nobody ends up a victim. If you have already given out any detail or made a payment, it is best to tell the police as soon as possible.
According to El Periódico de Aquí, with data from INCIBE on vishing.