Merseyside Police have warned that fraudsters impersonating officers appeared to use the force's genuine switchboard number, in calls that police say likely involved caller ID spoofing.
Hertfordshire Constabulary and, as reported by Bayside Radio, North Wales Police have issued similar alerts. Ofcom is separately investigating two telecoms providers over number misuse, but its announcement does not connect either company to these police impersonation scams.
Merseyside and Hertfordshire Warnings Show Two Ways to Borrow a Real Number
Merseyside Police's warning of 13 October 2026 named the number as 0151 709 6010, a Liverpool-area geographic code, and said offenders had likely used caller ID spoofing.
A day later, Hertfordshire Constabulary described a caller posing as a police fraud officer who gave a resident a legitimate Essex Police contact number, a badge number and a crime reference. Essex Police confirmed there was no such officer, and a spate of similar calls involved forces across the region.
Ofcom said on 15 July 2026 that criminal gangs abroad often imitate UK numbers because people are more likely to trust and answer them. In each case, the number is doing the persuading.
Merseyside and North Wales Police Detail the Fake Officer Script
Merseyside Police said offenders claimed someone had been arrested with a victim's ID or passport, that the victim was linked to a cyber crime investigation, or that property seized in raids held their details. Callers also claimed cryptocurrency accounts had been compromised.
In these fake police calls, offenders used fake officer names, collar numbers and crime references to probe crypto holdings and bank accounts, the force said.
North Wales Police have reportedly warned of callers claiming to investigate cryptocurrency or bank account problems, using a familiar urgency tactic by suggesting money is at risk or a suspect has been arrested. One caller claimed to be a Metropolitan Police Detective Chief Inspector, and an unsolicited email followed, Bayside Radio reported.
Ofcom's Separate Probes Into Vonage Business and Voxbone Remain Open
Ofcom opened separate investigations on 24 September 2026 into Vonage Business Limited and Voxbone SA, over concerns that numbers they hold are being misused, including to perpetrate scams. The investigations are open, and the regulator said it will provide an update in due course.
Ofcom expects phone companies to run 'know your customer' checks on business customers, so scammers cannot obtain valid numbers.
Separately, Ofcom finalised rules and guidance on 15 July 2026. Its guidance says telecoms companies should withhold the caller ID of calls that appear to come from a UK mobile roaming abroad unless they can verify it.
That measure targets UK mobile numbers, not geographic ones such as 0151. Ofcom's guidance of 25 September 2025 already expects operators to block calls from abroad that spoof UK fixed-line numbers, but police have not said where the Merseyside calls originated.
One Merseyside Transfer and a Reddit Post of 18 October 2026
Most Merseyside recipients identified the calls as a scam, but one transferred a significant quantity of money, and police are now urging the public to stay vigilant.
Detective Sergeant John Causton said impersonating an officer 'is a criminal offence which puts our communities at risk'. He added that offenders like this often deliberately target the most vulnerable people in the community.
A user on r/UKPersonalFinance wrote on 18 October 2026 that a call showing a police force's number 'seemed possibly genuine'. The post is an unverified first-person account.
Hertfordshire Police Advise Waiting Five Minutes Before Reporting a Suspect Call
Hertfordshire Constabulary says anyone reporting a suspicious call to police should wait at least five minutes before phoning, so they are not reconnected to the offender.
Merseyside Police says an officer should never ask for your PIN or card details. Chief Superintendent Amanda Wolf, head of Report Fraud operations, urged anyone who has lost money or been hacked after a fraudulent call to report it to Report Fraud.
Earlier TechTimes UK coverage found similar patterns in scam calls urging people onto WhatsApp and a deepfake voice case, where a familiar voice proved no guarantee.
Caller ID names a number, not a person, and these warnings suggest the two can be pulled apart.
