DORSET Police have been working with telecoms operators in a bid to tackle fraudsters.

They are reducing the amount of time a line stays open after the recipient has tried to disconnect the call.

The most recent telecoms operator to join police in the fight against phone fraud, also known as courier fraud, is BT.

BT has significantly reduced the time a phone line stays open in Dorset to two seconds, which means the person who has received the call can make another call almost immediately.

Fraudsters have been known to ring victims and pretend to be from the police, their bank or a retailer. Victims have been told their account has been compromised and they need to transfer the money over to them for safe keeping or send it to them via courier.

The victim is told to ring them back to ensure the call is genuine, but in fact the fraudsters stay on the line, and although the victim believes they are speaking to someone in authority, they are actually speaking to criminals pretending to be someone else.

The fraudsters have cost Dorset residents over £1 million over the last 15 months, although the total amount lost per month has declined since March.

There were 178 offences of telephone fraud reported to Dorset Police in March this year, with 19 losses totalling nearly £130,000.

In April, there were 168 reports with six losses totalling £46,000, and 15 offences were reported to the police in May totalling £21,500 from three victims.

Detective Chief Inspector,Jez Noyce said: “We have worked with telecoms companies to shut down the lines which have previously been kept open until both parties hang up.

“The latest figures show that this tactic, along with partnership working and our social media campaign ‘Hang Up On Fraudsters’, has helped reduce the number of victims.

“However, we are still investigating these crimes and want to hear from anyone who believes they have been targeted by these heartless gangs.

“Please remember that no one from any institution will ever ask you for your account number and PIN over the phone.

“Be on your guard if someone calls you and asks you to give out this private information – they’re crooks.”

BT has confirmed it has cut the open line time down to two seconds for all Dorset exchanges.