RESIDENTS are being warned to be on their guard after reports of fraudsters impersonating children.

North Yorkshire Police say that in recent days they have received reports of phone calls being made by scammers pretending to be your own child.

A spokesman for the force said: "The message starts: “Hi mum, it’s me. I’ve lost my phone and I need to borrow some money.” 

"This is the scam message currently claiming multiple victims across our county in the last few weeks. 

"You receive a message on WhatsApp from an unknown number. The message appears to be from your son or daughter and explains they’ve broken or lost their phone. This message is followed up by another supposedly on behalf of the child, requesting payment for an urgent bill. 

"Doesn’t sound too convincing? You’d be surprised by just how many people believe it to be true. After all, how many of us are losing and damaging our phone on a regular basis?

"The scammers will send out multiple messages like this every single day and all it takes is one or two people to fall for it.

"Please be vigilant for this and let your friends, family and networks know and if it’s happened to you, call us on 101 to report it so we can help keep others safe. 

"It’s not a new scam but it’s one which unfortunately isn’t going away anytime soon."