The public has been warned against the scourge of impersonators that is particularly common this year, given the forthcoming elections.
Charnel Hattingh, Fidelity ADT’s group head of marketing and communications, says impersonators are especially adept at taking advantage of government or council activities such as national censuses or metre box replacement drives.
In some areas, local councils do occasionally use the media to notify people before beginning door-to-door programmes in the suburbs, like the census, but householders must still make sure that anyone claiming to be there for that reason is legitimate.
She elaborates, pointing out that social media plays a significant role in the schemes that criminals carry out in specific locations since they keep an eye on suburban WhatsApp groups or get information from staff members working there.
“Criminals are well aware of how a lack of service delivery leaves citizens frustrated and vulnerable to accepting help because they are simply fed up with the current situation. Should, for example, your suburb have a prolonged water outage, you may find a ‘council worker’ at your gate offering to assist but needing access to your property to do so.
“The election is all about service delivery, and let’s face it. Who wouldn’t want a ‘Good Samaritan’ to appear out of nowhere and fix the power outage or address the water or sewage leak?”
Hattingh says it happens all too often because impersonators ensure they look the part.
“Be assured, a stranger pitching up at your gate posing as a council worker has done this many times before and been successful. This is because they’ll carry an ID badge, be dressed in some sort of uniform, and be holding a clipboard and sometimes even a biometrics machine.”
She advises that residents heed these tips to avoid falling victim to impersonators:
• Trust your gut. If something does not feel right, it probably is not. Alert your security company or the police to investigate, especially if the person takes off when you start probing them for more identification or a contact number for their manager.
• Make it a rule that nobody on the property opens the gate to a stranger, no matter who they say they are. This is a very important message to relay to domestic staff.
• Even if you are expecting a service provider or courier, verify their legitimacy before opening the gate.
• Domestic staff should carry a remote panic button linked to an armed response service at all times and know what to do and who to contact in an emergency.
• Report suspicious vehicles or people to your security company or the police.
• Take note of alerts on community WhatsApp groups about crime trends in your area.
“Criminals are always cooking up new schemes. Be wary of strangers at your gate, no matter how legitimate they look. Let’s all vote to keep our family and property safe by exercising vigilance and reporting suspicious activity.”
The Star
anita.nkonki@inl.co.za