EVERY new cash scam brings with it a new way of tricking unsuspecting victims.

Many frauds are now internet-based and come with a highly sophisticated backdrop which the criminals have set up to catch their prey.

The latest con on East Lancashire pensioners is actually very simple and involves the scammers posing as the very people their victims would probably trust most - police officers.

The result is that 33 people have fallen for it, around one per day over the past month.

So those on the receiving end shouldn’t feel embarrassed or silly. They are not alone.

It is the perpetrators who should feel embarrassed at their deplorable actions in stealing people’s life savings.

They have purposely targeted a generation who tend to trust people who claim to be in authority.

We must all be on our guard and warn elderly friends and relatives to never hand over bank details to anyone, even if they claim to be a police officer.

All approaches of this kind must be reported to police immediately to help them build a picture of the scam.

And the fraud teams must work quickly and effectively to trace the people responsible so they can be brought to justice before anyone else is scammed.