A woman in her 80s was almost conned out of thousands of pounds by a telephone scammer pretending to be a police officer.

Police have warned people to be vigilant after the attempted scam on January 27, when the woman living in the Roydon area, near Diss, received a call on her landline.

A man claiming to be a police officer said people in the Diss area had been losing thousands of pounds from their bank accounts from scammers, and she should withdraw £5,000 as soon as possible.

MORE: Elderly residents targeted by callers claiming to be police officersThe victim was told that two plain-clothes officers would watch her withdrew money from the bank. She was also asked to leave her front door ajar and told that two plain-clothes police officers would visit to collect the money.

MORE: Man in his 80s scammed out of thousands of poundsFollowing a visit to the victim's home by her daughter a few days later, the scam was discovered and stopped, and contact was made with the police. No money was stolen. Anyone with information should contact Norfolk Police on 101 quoting crime reference number 36/8571/20.

SCAM ADVICE

- Neither your bank, the police or National Crime Agency will ever ask you to withdraw money or purchase items.

- Your bank or the police will never ask for your PIN, bank card or bank account details over the phone - never give these details to anybody.

- Neither the police nor the banks will send a courier to collect money from you.

- Always request photo ID and if unsure call the police.

- If you're asked to telephone a bank, then always do it on a different phone to the one you were contacted on. Fraudsters will keep the line open and have been known to play ring tones, hold music and a recorded message down the phone so the victim believes they are making a call to a legitimate number. Use a friend or neighbour's telephone instead.

- Never download any software suggested by caller.

- Do not rush into complying to the scammers demands/requests.

- Friends, family, carers and neighbours are asked to spread the word to ensure everyone is aware of this scam and what they should do.