More and more people have been scammed by being told they will be billed for an Amazon Prime subscription.

Hertfordshire Constabulary says it has seen an increase in reports of people receiving the fraudulent phone messages across the county.

The force says victims are receiving voicemail messages saying that they are going to be billed for an Amazon Prime subscription.

The message directs the victims to press ‘1’ on their keypad to speak to an account manager, after which they are connected to a fraudster who then demands the victim’s bank details to cancel the subscription.

The scammers have also been asking the victims to download an app called ‘Team Viewer’.

Once this has been installed on a device, the scammers gain remote access to the device and all the personal data that is stored on it.

The county’s police force is urging people to stay vigilant of the scam calls.

Action Fraud Case Manager, Elaine Crate, from Hertfordshire Constabulary’s Victim Fraud Hub, said: “Amazon will never contact its customers via a phone message and ask you to divulge personal and bank details in this way.

“We advise never to click on any links or download apps under these circumstances. Inform your bank immediately if you think you have downloaded a suspect app and do not use your device until it has been analysed by a security professional.

“If you do think you have may have given bank details to a fraudster then please contact your bank immediately to advise them what has happened. You can report the incident to Action Fraud either by telephone on 0300 123 2040 or online at: www.actionfraud.police.uk.

“Action Fraud is the UK’s national reporting centre for fraud. Alternatively if you consider yourself vulnerable please dial 101 to be connected to Hertfordshire Constabulary.

“Please help us to raise awareness by sharing this warning with your friends and family, especially if they are vulnerable or elderly.”