Police have issued a warning to the public to stay alert to the threat from fraudsters.

Devon and Cornwall Police issued a statement today (September 30) saying: "We would like to make residents aware that we have received reports of various scams taking place where a cold caller, email, or automated call claims to be from Amazon or Amazon Prime."

The force advise people to be wary of all contact of this type – the scams have varied and include the following:

an automated call a stating a number should be pressed for various reasons

or by someone in person asking for vouchers to be purchased in a shop and codes to be handed over

a request to download an app

emails with links attached (to phishing sites)

A force spokesperson said: "All of these are scams and instructions should not be followed; please hang up, don’t give out any personal information or click on any links.

"If you want to check a call is genuine - hang up and make contact with the company via a reliable source.

"Please wait 10 minutes before making another call or clear the line by phoning a friend/family member.

"If you have any concerns please phone 101 or email [email protected]"

If you have fallen victim to a scam, you can report this to Action Fraud: https://www.actionfraud.police.uk/

Any suspicious emails can be reported to the National Cyber Security Centre: [email protected].