Stolen Smartcards

The Fraud and Security Management Service has received information that at least four General Practices in the Hampshire area have been the targeted by thieves stealing personal belongings and NHS Smartcards. Following the thefts, practice staff have received telephone calls from individuals purporting to be from the bank and/or the police seeking personal information.

It is believed that the caller is attempting to gather information to enable them to access bank accounts. There is also a potential that the fraudsters may attempt to access NHS data using the NHS Smartcard.

Action Required

If any staff are the victim of theft, the Police should be contacted immediately, and a crime reference number should be obtained. Crimes can be reported to Hampshire Police online by visiting: https://www.hampshire.police.uk/ro/report/

If any person receives a telephone call from someone claiming to be from their bank, the Police, a computer/software company or similar, caution should always be applied, particularly if the caller is warning of a crime affecting personal accounts, or a problem with a work or personal computer’s software. The Police and banks will never ask individuals to move money or reveal PIN numbers.

If a call of this nature is received it is best to simply hang up. If there is a concern that it might be genuine, then it is recommended to ask the caller for their name and department and then call them back on the correct number, obtained independently (from your bank card or from Google), ideally using another phone (the fraudster may sometimes keep the phone line connected so that when you redial you are still connected to the fraudster).

Further information on fraud and security can be found by visiting the Fraud and Security Management Service webpages at https://nhsfraudandsecurity.co.uk/