Victoria police are cautioning the public after an 83-year-old woman lost $3,000 in a gift-card scam.
The woman contacted police Sunday to report the fraud.
She said she received a call from an unknown number and someone claiming to be from Visa said her account had been hacked. She was told that her credit card was used for $2,600 in charges on eBay and for a fund transfer to American money.
The woman was told that in order to stop the charges, she had to buy $5,000 in Google Play gift cards and provide the card information. She was directed to go to various convenience stores to buy $1,000 in cards at each location.
She provided the card information from each stop.
After she had purchased $3,000 worth of cards, a staff member at the fourth location alerted her that it was a scam.
Police said those carrying out such frauds are often aggressive and convincing. They said a financial institution will never ask for gift cards.