Today in Switzerland: A roundup of the latest news on Friday
A new money-extorting scam is perpetrated in Switzerland; streaming service prices to go up; and more news in our roundup on Friday.
Cost of Netflix subscription in Switzerland will rise next month
From June 3rd, the streaming service will increase the price of its monthly subscriptions by 8 to 12 percent.
This means that the basic subscription will become 8 percent more expensive, with price rising from 11.90 to 12.90 francs
The price of the standard model will go up by 11 percent — from 18.90 to 20.90 francs.
And hose who are subscribed to the premium service will see their rates increase from 24.90 to 27.90 francs — that is, by 12 percent.
Beware of the new SwissPass scam
The SwissPass Alliance, an umbrella group for public transport companies, has fallen victim of scammers.
If you have received an email with a logo of SwissPass and / or national railway company SBB / CFF / FFS asking you to update your SwissPass account — don’t.
And certainly don’t follow the instruction to provide your credit card number.
“Unfortunately, these so-called phishing emails are sent by scammers in the name of SwissPass," the company said.
“We advise recipients to delete such emails, not to open any links or attachments, and not to disclose any personal data,” SwissPass added. “We never ask customers to reveal personal and confidential information by telephone, email or SMS.”
If information has already been entered, get in touch with the SBB Contact Center on number 0848 44 66 88, as well as with your bank.”
This is only the latest in a long line of attempts to extort money from victims in Switzerland.
These are some others:
How to avoid the 'police' phone scam in Switzerland
The common scams foreigners in Switzerland need to be aware of
Swiss government to beef up country’s civil defence
Also known as ‘civil protection’, its role is to provide support to the military in emergency situations or natural disasters.
The last time the civil protection staff was massively mobilised was during the Covid pandemic, when its members helped the army set up tents outside hospitals ,and distributed essential supplies and sanitary materials such as masks and disinfectants, to medical personnel.
However, this service suffers from personnel shortage — the current number of conscripts is 60,000, which is 12,000 short of the national target.
Among the measures the Federal Council is adopting to boost the service’s ranks is to make it obligatory to those who have not yet completed a military recruit training by the age of 25, and former army members who who are no longer fit for military service.
Those doing community service could also be mobilised.
Switzerland could get a new region — but in name only
'Bernese Jura, a French-speaking area with a population of 50,000 located in one of Switzerland's largest German-speaking cantons (Bern) may be morphing into a region known as ‘'Grand Chasseral'.
The new name aims to transform the the often-negative image of the region marked by decades of internal strife between the French and German speakers, which culminated in 2019, with residents of its capital city, Moutier, voting to ‘leave’ the canton of Bern and join neighbouring Jura instead.
With the new geographical identity, the region is set to start a new chapter in its history, with a name which doesn’t hark back to its conflicted past.
If you have any questions about life in Switzerland, ideas for articles or news tips for The Local, please get in touch with us at [email protected]
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Cost of Netflix subscription in Switzerland will rise next month
From June 3rd, the streaming service will increase the price of its monthly subscriptions by 8 to 12 percent.
This means that the basic subscription will become 8 percent more expensive, with price rising from 11.90 to 12.90 francs
The price of the standard model will go up by 11 percent — from 18.90 to 20.90 francs.
And hose who are subscribed to the premium service will see their rates increase from 24.90 to 27.90 francs — that is, by 12 percent.
Beware of the new SwissPass scam
The SwissPass Alliance, an umbrella group for public transport companies, has fallen victim of scammers.
If you have received an email with a logo of SwissPass and / or national railway company SBB / CFF / FFS asking you to update your SwissPass account — don’t.
And certainly don’t follow the instruction to provide your credit card number.
“Unfortunately, these so-called phishing emails are sent by scammers in the name of SwissPass," the company said.
“We advise recipients to delete such emails, not to open any links or attachments, and not to disclose any personal data,” SwissPass added. “We never ask customers to reveal personal and confidential information by telephone, email or SMS.”
If information has already been entered, get in touch with the SBB Contact Center on number 0848 44 66 88, as well as with your bank.”
This is only the latest in a long line of attempts to extort money from victims in Switzerland.
These are some others:
How to avoid the 'police' phone scam in Switzerland
The common scams foreigners in Switzerland need to be aware of
Swiss government to beef up country’s civil defence
Also known as ‘civil protection’, its role is to provide support to the military in emergency situations or natural disasters.
The last time the civil protection staff was massively mobilised was during the Covid pandemic, when its members helped the army set up tents outside hospitals ,and distributed essential supplies and sanitary materials such as masks and disinfectants, to medical personnel.
However, this service suffers from personnel shortage — the current number of conscripts is 60,000, which is 12,000 short of the national target.
Among the measures the Federal Council is adopting to boost the service’s ranks is to make it obligatory to those who have not yet completed a military recruit training by the age of 25, and former army members who who are no longer fit for military service.
Those doing community service could also be mobilised.
Switzerland could get a new region — but in name only
'Bernese Jura, a French-speaking area with a population of 50,000 located in one of Switzerland's largest German-speaking cantons (Bern) may be morphing into a region known as ‘'Grand Chasseral'.
The new name aims to transform the the often-negative image of the region marked by decades of internal strife between the French and German speakers, which culminated in 2019, with residents of its capital city, Moutier, voting to ‘leave’ the canton of Bern and join neighbouring Jura instead.
With the new geographical identity, the region is set to start a new chapter in its history, with a name which doesn’t hark back to its conflicted past.
If you have any questions about life in Switzerland, ideas for articles or news tips for The Local, please get in touch with us at [email protected]
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