The Australian Federal Police (AFP) is warning the community about a scam involving fake police representatives attempting to con money from the public.

AFP switchboard operators have received hundreds of calls in the past couple of months from people across Australia who have reported receiving calls from individuals claiming to be employed by the AFP.

Scammers are falsely identifying themselves as a Federal Agent and are telling victims they have identified suspicious activity linked to their bank accounts.

They then request personal details including a Medicare number, address and bank details.

Scammers are also targeting people via email and social media with fake arrest warrants. The offenders then call their victims and demand payments – ordering them to deposit money into a nominated bank account or purchase online vouchers.

Sadly, some people have been manipulated by these offenders, including an elderly woman who reported that she deposited more than $16,000 into a scam bank account.

In other cases, people have withdrawn money from their account but fortunately, have spoken to family or friends and realised they are being scammed before handing over any funds.

The calls appear to come from a legitimate AFP number, but the AFP has made it clear that it will never call, email or contact you via social media and threaten to arrest you, demand money or ask for personal details.

The scammers have managed to mimic an AFP number to disguise their identity and police suspect the calls originate from overseas.

Have you received a call purporting to be from the AFP? Did you recognise that it was a scam? Did you report the scam? Have you had a family member fall victim to a scam?