Scams targeting foreigners are on the rise in Czechia – here's what you need to know

“This is the Czech police. We inform you that your ID has been used for money laundering – a warrant is out for your arrest. Please press “1” to speak to an officer.” A disconcerting – even shocking – message to hear at any time, and one that many foreigners in Czechia have received in the past few weeks. 

This recorded phone call is a fake; somebody (or a group of people) pretending to be the Czech police in an attempt to scam or defraud someone. Along with other attempted scams and impersonations – such as faux messages from the Finanční úřad (Tax Office) and Czech Post – rogue phone calls and texts have justifiably worried hundreds, if not thousands, of expats in Czechia.

Expats.cz reached out to people affected by the attempted scam attempts and the Czech police to help fully explain what is happening – and the best way to stay safe. We’ll explain the most frequent scams afflicting expats in Czechia at the moment, how to recognize a fake call or message, and what to do if you receive one. 

Among the most frequent scams affecting foreigners at the moment is a phone call from a number pretending to be the Czech police.

Expats.cz spoke to Krystel, who recently received the phone call; her confusion and worry led her to visit the (real) Czech police afterward. Krystel told us that she received a pre-recorded message – in English – from a voice saying they were from the Czech police. The voice said that their ID had been used in a money laundering case and that a warrant was out for their arrest. Then, the call ended.

“It was suspicious…none of it made sense to me at all,” she told Expats.cz. She also tried calling back the number – which had a Czech area code – but got no response. “That’s why I went to the police to make sure everything was ok.” She visited a local Czech police branch and showed the phone number that dialed her. An officer then told her that the number was fake and that the number “wouldn’t be used to contact her.” 

Several other expats complained of calls, all conveying a similar or identical message. Christopher told Expats.cz that his wife received a call – also pre-recorded and in English – saying her ID was being used for fraud and that she needed to speak to a police officer. The voice then asked her to press ‘1’ on the keypad to speak to an officer.

After hanging up, she searched the number online and got no results. Notably, Christopher’s wife is Czech – suggesting that the scammers may also have their sights on locals and natives.

Václav also received the same faux call – he told Expats.cz that it “sounded pretty convincing” until he picked up on the voice’s accent being non-Czech. Another person also reported receiving the calls, but said they were from Haitian, Angolan, and Filipino country area codes. Several people commented they had received multiple phone calls detailing the same scam attempt, with James saying that he thought one of the recorded voices had an Indian accent.

Expats.cz reached out to Czech police for comment on the rising trend of fake calls. “We are aware of the wave of attacks that have been taking place in recent weeks and whose traces lead to Asian countries,” head of press Ondřej Moravčík told us.

Interestingly, Moravčík said this scam was “a global activity” and that the impersonation of Czech police “is probably just a coincidence.” Despite the calls being recorded in English, Moravčík said: “This fraudulent campaign is not aimed at foreigners in the Czech Republic, but rather all EU citizens.”

Moravčík also told Expats.cz that the police would never communicate “in this way” (using primarily English and via phone call). “If anyone becomes a fraud victim, they should immediately go to the nearest police department,” he said.

On a brighter note, Moravčík said that so far nobody – to the police’s knowledge – has been defrauded using the scam.

Another scam doing the rounds is a fake voicemail and text message from a number claiming to be the Czech Tax Office, informing people they are owed a hefty tax rebate – usually to the tune of CZK 30,000. This attempted fraud aims to glean someone’s sensitive details, such as their rodné číslo (birth number) and bank details.

Expats.cz spoke with Kylie, an expat who received the random text message – from a Czech number and in Czech – that displayed a link to a fake webpage, which posed as the Moje Daně (My Taxes) portal on the official Tax Office website. 

After clicking on the link, she saw a highly realistic-looking webpage pretending to be the Tax Office. A long message told her that she was owed CZK 30,000 and would receive this amount within 30 days from the beginning of April. The faux website mentioned that this was due to the paper tax return deadline elapsing in early April – presumably as a way to make the fake rebate seem more legitimate. 

She inputted her name and rodné číslo, and then her phone froze. 

“That’s when I realized something was wrong,” she told us. She went on the official Tax Office website, where she found a section warning people of the exact attempted scam she had just experienced. She canceled her bank card just in case.

In an interview with Czech Radio last month, Czech Financial Administration spokesperson Tomáš Weiss said that the fake text messages often follow phone calls or voicemails informing a person about the alleged tax overpayment. 

Advising people on how to spot whether a message is a scam, Weiss cautioned: “The Financial Administration or Tax Office never uses voicemail when calling. We also never send any active link or click-throughs anywhere in SMS messages or e-mails.”

Referring to the practice as “vishing” –  a type of scam where fraudsters use phone calls or voicemails to impersonate trusted entities – Weiss said that last year the Tax Office received reports of similar scams ongoing. He advised the public to hang up if they ever feel suspicious about a phone call from someone purporting to be the Tax Office – and to certainly ignore any texts with links.

Another frequent (and long-running) scam is a text message from a phone number claiming to be Czech Post. These messages usually inform people that a package will soon be delivered to their home address or may also tell the recipient that their package couldn’t be sent due to the non-payment of customs fees – something that can especially target foreigners in Czechia.

Ana told Expats.cz that she recently received a message saying a package had been “left for her” – which she found immediately odd, as she hadn’t been expecting one. “Hardly a day goes by that I don't receive some spam like a scam call or a message,” she added.

Other examples of the scam include telling the recipient that the parcel has been delivered to an incorrect address.

The scam's goal is to get people to enter their sensitive details after they have pressed the malicious link on the text message. The SMSs are always sent in Czech and usually from a Czech phone number – but they can come from different area codes.

Czech Post has addressed the issue, telling people to pay close attention to the sender’s number. The state postal carrier has also warned people of fraudulent e-mails with the same fake messages. Consumers who receive fraudulent messages should not click any links, provide no details, and report the issue to info@cpost.cz.