Police are advising people to be on their guard after a fresh spate of investment and romance scams have proved costly for unsuspecting victims duped out of large amounts of money.
A number of serious fraud complaints have sparked police investigations after New Zealanders transferred money into offshore accounts in sophisticated scams.
The latest to cause alarm include an investment scam where people are cold-called from Hong Kong or China and offered shares in well-known companies offering large returns.
There is also a romance scam where victims meet a person through an online dating site and unknowingly transfer stolen funds into offshore bank accounts.
On each occasion the offenders are from overseas countries and once they receive the first payment of money they continue to pressure victims to transfer larger sums of money at short notice.
