Motorists are being targeted by a parking charge scam, it has been revealed.
Emails have been sent out across Perth and Kinross, demanding payment for fines allegedly incurred after parking on private property.
The message states that a notice of a parking charge has been sent out and remains unpaid, before asking the recipient to follow a link at the bottom of the email.
It also claims that photographic evidence of the infraction can be seen by accessing the web link, which is missing from some of the emails.
Perth and Kinross Council’s Trading Standards team is advising people who receive this message, which comes from a “justice.gov.uk” address, to seek further advice.
Although the link, when it is included in an email, does not appear to work when it is activated, officers believe it is installing malware in the background where it cannot be seen.
This could then be used to harvest personal information stored on a computer, which is then accessed by the people behind the scam.
This warning comes just days after The Courier launched an investigation into parking fines. Lawyers revealed that private parking charges were “unenforceable”.
Unlike fixed penalty notices issued by Police Scotland or traffic wardens from Perth and Kinross Council, refusing to pay private tickets is not a criminal offence.
Of the 1.8 million tickets issued in the UK each year, around 600,000 go unpaid.
Community safety convener Douglas Pover urged residents of Perth and Kinross to be wary if they receive any suspicious emails claiming to be chasing a parking fine, or requesting a payment for any unidentified services or charges.
He said: “I would advise people never to click on a link or attachment in an email when they do not know the sender.
“They should also never click on links or attachments in emails purporting to be from a financial institution. A bank would not ask you to click on a link in an email they would be more likely to telephone you about personal matters.
“When receiving calls from someone purporting to be from your bank, always ensure you take steps to confirm it is a bank representative you are speaking to and do not give your full password or your PIN.
“Banks will only ever ask for digits from your password and will never ask you to give your PIN.”
Anyone who has received an email about a supposed parking charge is advised to call Citizens Advice Scotland on 08454 040506 for help.