Dutch cops’ shame game works wonders as most wanted scammers now turned in

Netherlands police's scheme to unmask and shame scammers into submission is proving highly successful, with 74 of its 100 most wanted now known to investigators. The country's Game Over?!" campaign involved releasing the blurred images of fraudsters into the public domain and threatening to unmask them within two weeks if they did not turn themselves in. True to its word, after two weeks, the Dutch police unblurred the alleged offenders' faces via social media and advertising boards across the country, including at gas stations, shopping centers, and train stations. The result? Thirty-four handed themselves in, and revealing the remaining faces led to the identification of a further 40 individuals. The police said it received more than 500 tips from the public after it unblurred the faces. Its website was viewed more than two million times, and its campaign images were seen nearly 90 million times on social media. Of the 74 now known to the police, more than half (38) have been questioned, and the interrogations for the rest are already scheduled. Police have arrested six individuals so far, although they stated that this doesn't necessarily mean the arrests were directly for their alleged crimes. Arrests may take place when someone fails to appear for police questioning, for example, or if a suspect is linked to multiple offenses. Anne Jan Oosterheert, portfolio holder for online crime at the Dutch Politie, said: This form of crime claims many victims. It has a huge impact on both the victims and society. The goal of Game Over?! is therefore to identify and prosecute the suspects. With the identification of 74 suspects, this goal has been amply achieved, and so far, we can speak of a successful investigative offensive. We are very satisfied and grateful for all the help we have received from citizens." An unusual take on appealing to the public for support, Game Over?! aimed to give the alleged offenders the chance to retain their anonymity in exchange for helping the police, and potentially assisting their own prosecution. The idea behind naming the campaign Game Over?!" came from the term F-Game," or fraud game, which is what police say offenders often refer to when discussing their actions. The police's initial announcement explicitly called the campaign a public attack on criminals, saying that it was also relying on public shaming to eventually apprehend the alleged offenders. The same message also came with a warning that young people were increasingly being recruited to these schemes, often paid very little for the privilege. Of the 74 now identified, the police said today that the youngest suspect was aged just 14, with the oldest being 42. The average age across them all was 22. Game Over?! explicitly targeted banking helpdesk impersonators, fake police officers, and card collectors, with officials saying they had become a nasty" social problem. These nasty forms of fraud have now become a social problem that can also be solved in collaboration with society," said Oosterheert previously as part of the campaign's launch announcement. Of the crime types police strategists are looking to stamp out, cases involving bank helpdesk fraud are the most common, and typically target the elderly. The classic script goes: scammer calls the victim pretending to be a representative of their bank; throughout the course of the phone call, the scammer convinces the victim to surrender enough of their details so they can go away and access their account; the scammer then steals their money. Fake police officer scams are another, more recent scourge on the country, that in some cases have become violent and even deadly. They typically also target the elderly and see criminals knocking on doors, offering to safeguard valuables on the residents' behalf. Police say that tens of thousands of elderly victims have fallen victim to scams like these, resulting in police fielding calls from victims and their frightening stories." The impact on these often vulnerable victims is enormous," the police said. Their sense of security is often completely gone, as is their trust in the government and their fellow human beings." (R)