POLICE are warning householders not to give out their bank details after two women were duped by con men.

One received a letter saying that she had been left some money.

The letter, which claimed to be from Hong Kong, said that the woman had to provide her bank details before she could claim the cash.

Another woman, from Bewdley, received a letter suggesting there was a large sum in Hong Kong dollars waiting to be collected, and asking her to phone a number. There was no request

for money, but she was suspicious.

A police spokesman said: "There are numerous scams, some of which are convincing, and people do need to be on their guard.

"Anyone who receives an e-mail or a letter asking for their bank details or saying they have won prizes or been left money, is urged to delete it or bin it immediately.

"No one should be tempted to ring phone numbers and they should remember that if something sounds too good to be true, it usually is."

February has been named 'scam awareness' month and the Office of Fair Trading is running a month-long campaign to alert the public to various swindles.

For more information about how to avoid falling victime to the con men, log on to the Office Of Fair Trading site at www.oft.gov.uk