A retired couple from Lainville-en-Vexin, a village of nearly 800 residents in France’s Yvelines department, lost assets worth around €1.1 million after falling victim to a well-organized scam.
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It all began on July 31, when the elderly couple received a call from someone claiming to work for a security company. He told them their personal information had been compromised in a data breach and advised them to remain inside their home. To make the claim more credible, the caller also instructed them to file a preliminary report.
Two days after the first call, according to French media reports, the fraudsters proceeded with the next stage of their plan. Under the pretext of a security procedure, they lured the husband away from the house and drove him away in a vehicle.
Meanwhile, his wife was contacted by another person who also posed as an employee of the security company. After learning that the couple owned a safe, he asked the woman what was inside and convinced her that the valuables needed to be moved temporarily to a secure location.
The pensioner placed €5,500 in cash, gold coins, gold bars and jewelry in a bag. The items had a total value of around €1.1 million and were handed over to a man who arrived at the house posing as a courier.
Shortly afterward, the elderly couple realized they had been scammed. They immediately alerted the authorities and filed a police report.
Investigators suspect the victims may have been selected using information obtained through a personal data breach. In recent months, several French companies involved in buying and selling gold have been targeted by cyberattacks.
Those responsible have not yet been caught and remain wanted. French authorities are also investigating whether they may be linked to other fraud cases targeting owners of gold and other valuables.
