The Diocesan Secretary, George Colville, has issued a warning to parishes to be on guard for people trying to take advantage of the current situation by fraudulently requesting payments from them.
Writing to all Treasurers in a letter last week, he said:
"Unfortunately, there will be some people who will take advantage of the current situation to try and commit fraud. For example, please be on your guard for unexpected requests for payments perhaps appearing to use an email address you recognise but with a different reply address or contact details. Similarly, although we understand that in some cases the normal controls over cash, banking and payment may not be ideal at present please try to protect each other when handling financial transactions and maintain internal controls as far as is possible."
George Colville's comments come as councils around the country are also warning people to beware of scammers pretending to be health officials or offering to pick up food and medicines.