SCAMMERS are at it again, with more sophisticated tactics and ever-convincing deceit.

Warwick woman Karen McKavanagh was hit with a beauty when her work email account was hacked.

"My friend in Chinchilla phoned me and was asking me if I was okay," Mrs McKavanagh said.

The friend received an email from Mrs McKavanagh's work address which said she was in The Philippines, had fallen into trouble and needed financial help.

"Then I got calls from other friends and it turns out everyone in my contact list got (the email)," she said.

Fortunately her friends were wise and phoned Mrs McKavanagh to see what had happened before they handed over wads of money.

The scammers hacked into her account, stole her contacts and created a replica email, with one letter difference.

She now cannot send emails from her account and has lost all her contacts.

Crime prevention officer Constable Wendy Tamblyn said this was no new story and scammers were growing smarter by the minute.

"They (scams) are changing but they still have the core principles: Wanting to gain access to your information; access to finances; and to deceive you and take your details," Const Tamblyn said.

"People should be aware they are getting more sophisticated."

But it's not just the internet where scammers choose to hide, they can turn up on your front doorstep.

"Door-to-door salesman can be scammers and say they're there to fix your roof or the hot water system then they sit on your roof for a few hours then drive you to the ATM after so you can get out the cash," Const Tamblyn said.

"These guys usually come in batches, so they sweep through the town in one or two days."

She reminded residents to be vigilant, question everything and report anything suspicious.

Report it

Warwick Police 4660 4444 and scamwatch.com.au