Greece considers new ‘112’ alert system to protect elderly from fraud
Greek authorities are considering the creation of a mass emergency alert system similar to the country’s “112” service to warn elderly citizens about increasingly sophisticated fraud schemes, according to a report published on September 8.
The proposal comes amid a reported surge in scams involving individuals posing as accountants, utility workers or employees of Greece’s electricity distribution network operator, DEDDIE. Authorities are examining whether mobile alerts could be used to warn citizens when specific fraud methods are detected.
LEGISLATIVE CHANGES UNDER CONSIDERATION
According to the report, authorities are recording around 30 reported fraud cases involving citizens every day, with criminal proceeds estimated to have reached tens of millions of euros. Fraud targeting elderly people has reportedly increased by between 30% and 50% annually despite repeated awareness campaigns by the Hellenic Police, including outreach through media outlets, churches, senior citizens’ centres and local markets.
Authorities are also considering legislative changes that could make fraud against elderly people an aggravating circumstance. Another proposal would seek to limit the legal consequences of offenders escaping punishment simply by compensating their victims after the crime.
The report says some repeat offenders allegedly contact victims after their arrest, apologize and offer to return the stolen money in an effort to prevent pretrial detention and obtain more favorable legal treatment. Authorities are reportedly concerned that this can allow individuals involved in organized fraud networks to return quickly to criminal activity.
COOPERATION WITH BANKS AND DEDDIE
The planned measures could also include closer cooperation with banks and other financial institutions to alert them to emerging fraud techniques.
Authorities are considering cooperation with DEDDIE so that citizens can quickly verify whether individuals claiming to be electricity workers are genuine employees or members of criminal groups.
Mobile telecommunications companies could also be asked to introduce measures against the large-scale purchase of prepaid SIM cards by a single individual. According to the report, such cards are allegedly passed on to criminal networks and used to contact potential victims while making it more difficult to trace the perpetrators.
The scams reportedly involve a range of familiar tactics, including false claims about traffic accidents, supposedly advantageous financial transactions and fabricated problems requiring immediate repairs to electrical installations inside homes.
SPECIALIZED POLICE UNIT CONSIDERED
Another proposal reportedly involves the creation of a specialized unit within Greece’s so-called “Greek FBI,” bringing together officers from different police departments, including burglary and cybercrime units.
Its main objective would be to map organized fraud networks and coordinate efforts to dismantle them.
Greek security officials are also reportedly taking into account the fact that fraud groups frequently change the areas in which they operate, sometimes moving between locations several times in a single day to avoid detection.
MASS ALERTS AIMED AT ELDERLY CITIZENS
For this reason, authorities are examining whether a new electronic warning system could send targeted mass messages to the public at regular intervals.
The aim would be to alert citizens about active fraud methods without creating unnecessary panic or causing widespread disruption. If implemented, the system could effectively extend the preventive logic of Greece’s existing 112 emergency alert infrastructure to another growing public-safety threat: organized fraud targeting vulnerable citizens.
