Typically, recipients of these letters and e-mails are targeted randomly and are promised large sums of money by paying an advance fee or disclosing personal information.

Detective Inspector Tracy Mackay of Grampian Police Fraud Squad commented: "This is not a new type of scam, however a number of letters and e-mails are in circulation in the Grampian area over recent weeks and as such we would urge anyone who is in receipt of such communication to disregard it.

"While it may be that people are only initially asked to provide bank account details in order to receive a large sum of money, typically the fraudster will go on to ask for a deposit or assistance with a banking fee. Once they are in receipt of this fee it is usually the last time the victim ever hears from them. As always, the general rule to remember here is that if the offer seems too good to be true, then it almost certainly is."

West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine MSP Mike Rumbles also warned Aberdeenshire residents to be vigilant after he was targeted by scammers.

Mr Rumbles received a letter similar to that received by a Kemnay resident that was reported previously in the Herald. The letter claimed Mr Rumbles had won 815,000 euros in a Spanish lottery. The letter, that had a Malaga postmark, then requested bank details.

Commenting on the scam, Mr Rumbles said, "This letter was clearly a scam to try and get my bank details, I hadn't even bought a ticket for the Spanish lottery! However, I am concerned that the document looks quite official and was indeed posted from Spain.

"These scammers are obviously targeting people in our area, so I would urge local people to be vigilant and protect their bank details from these fraudsters."

If anyone has lost money, or been the victim of fraud, Grampian Police can be contacted on 0845 600 5 700 or, if you wish to remain anonymous, Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.