The Serious Fraud Office is warning investors of a rise in affinity fraud, whereby family and friends are targetted in investment scams.
The office says in the past year it has investigated a variety of cases where there was some common link between the parties involved, including family, iwi and religious affiliations.
SFO spokesperson Simon McArley says affinity fraud tends to occur in small or single-operator financial advice firms that build their business through personal trust.
Mr McArley says someone may be a close friend but people need to be sceptical and seek professional advice before determining trustworthiness.