Vehicle show advice from cyber crime cops

The two-day Commercial Vehicle (CV) Show opened at Birmingham NEC on Tuesday but a warning has been issued by police on Wednesday.

A spokeswoman for the cyber crime unit said: “Police have received a number of reports from exhibitors, who have been contacted by individuals trying to extort money.

“It is believed that the individuals make threats to attack the exhibitor’s website with denial of service.

“Officers are investigating reports that exhibitors are being contacted by unknown people trying to collect outstanding money on behalf of the CV Show, which have turned out to be fraudulent.

“If you’re in any doubt about the validity of a call you receive contact The CV Show organisers directly via [email protected] or call 020 3857 9008.

“If you have received any communication containing threats, demands for payment or have suffered any losses in relation to this matter, please report this to South Yorkshire Police and record any Crime Reference Numbers provided.”

Victims are also asked to contact the Yorkshire and the Humber Regional Cyber Crime Unit via [email protected].

To learn more about what a Denial of Service attack is visit the Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT) document https://www.cert.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/Denial-of-service-attacks-what-you-need-to-know1.pdf.

CERT is a cross industry, government and academia partnership team working to enhance the UK’s cyber resilience.