Cooksbridge, Offham & Hamsey

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CHURCH SERVICES: Sunday, St Peter's Church, 8am Holy Communion, 10.15am Sunday School in the hall, 10.30am Parish Communion followed by coffee in the hall.

REMINDER: Have you remembered to get your sponsorship form from the Rector to take part in the sponsored Ride and Stride on Saturday, September 9, 9am to 5pm? Half the proceeds go to (SHCT), the other half to St Peter’s Church.

FRAUDSTERS: Focus on Farmers is a report in my August British Farmer and Grower. Online fraudsters are targeting farmers as part of identity theft and fake website scam. DS Steve Payne of ERSOU’s Regional Cyber Crime Unit has been investigating organised criminals who create websites using the names of genuine companies that don’t have online presence. This tricks potential buyers into making purchases from the website and transferring money into the conman’s account, but the victim does not receive the goods. Agricultural retailers who do not currently have a website should consider registering the domain name of their company to prevent anyone else from doing so for criminal purposes. The unit also advises buyers to verify suppliers before making any payment, even if a website appears to be genuine. If you would like to find out more about avoiding fraudulent activity, contact CallFirst for business and legal advice on 03708 458458. An NFU member was tricked into handing over nearly £11,000 for an item that he would only be using for a few hours a month, so he couldn’t justify buying a high-grade model brand new. Instead he spotted one online and then got caught out.