Conmen have stolen £4,000 while posing as police officers in a series of distraction burglaries and attempts in Brighton, Portslade, Lancing and Hurstpierpoint this week.
The conmen struck as police were preparing to publicise a national campaign to raise warn people of the dangers of bogus callers.
Two men knocked on the doors of homes in Hollingdean, Woodingdean, Hove, Portslade, Lancing and Hurstpierpoint, according to Sussex Police.
They proffered a form of police identification and told residents that their home had been burgled and asked them to check their valuables.
The pair are described as white, aged 30 to 40, and 5ft 7in to 5ft 11in.
One of the men had a proportionate or plump build, short brown hair and dark clothes, described by some residents as a black leather jacket or coat and gloves.
The other had a slim to proportionate build and wore dark clothes.
Detectives believe that they may have driven a dark medium sized or a pale larger car.
The men called on an 86-year-old woman in Davey Drive, Hollingdean, at about 11.20am on Monday 1 March but left empty-handed.
Just after 8am on Tuesday 2 March two men called on an elderly lady in Brighton Road, Hurstpierpoint. One showed the caller a black identification wallet and intimated to the occupant that they were police officers and wanted to check her property.
The lady asked why they were not in uniform and they left.
Several homes were targeted on Wednesday 3 March.
At about 4.30pm two men in black called at the home of a 67-year-old woman in Lockwood Crescent, Woodingdean, claiming her tap was running and needed to be turned off.
The pair produced ID and claimed to be from the “water board”.
The woman said that she would call the police and tried to close her door.
One of the men put his foot in the door but they didn’t manage to enter the house.
