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Our community has been the focus of “Scammers” over the past few years. Their “Scams” come at us primarily via phone and email, however from time to time via snail mail.
1… Recently reported were two incidents (scams) in which the victims lost a total of $36,000 dollars.
Both of these cases had similar scenarios. The victim receives a phone call from an alleged “Attorney” who explains that the victim’s Grandchild has been in a traffic accident, and that the other party had been seriously injured or killed. This news is likely to switch the victim’s brain from logic to fear and anxiety. He further explains that as a result of the accident, the Grandchild was arrested and has been charged with multiple felonies. This “Attorney” tells the resident that he has been able to get the Grandchild temporarily out of jail. The victim is allowed to talk to the “Alleged Grandchild” who immediately starts crying and pleads for help, and not to tell the parents what has happened. The crying is used to distort the voice of the grandchild. The “Attorney” then gets back on the phone and tells the victim that X amount of money is needed to bail out the Grandchild. The victim is directed to go purchase Home Depot Gift cards, and call him back with the numbers on the back of the cards. The victim is cautioned to make up a story as to why these cards were being purchased, if questioned by the Home Depot Salesperson. (The Lincoln Police are following up on these cases.)
2… In this case the resident received an Email allegedly from “Microsoft Pro” in which the resident was thanked for an online purchase which the resident never made. This email has an “Order number, SKU number, Product name and the amount $3,815.50. At the bottom of this “alleged” sales receipt is a phone number with an area code 845 and the resident is directed to call this number if there are any questions about this alleged purchase. (This alert resident did not fall for this Scam.)
The “Scammers” want you to call them back and say that you did not purchase the item. When you do call, they will probably ask for your credit card number so they can “allegedly” put this amount back on your credit card.
3… A resident received a phone call “Allegedly” from a supervisor at the Social Security Administration. This was a “Robo” call in which the male voice advised the resident that her Social Security Card had been compromised. The resident was to call back immediately with the last four digits on her Social Security Card or a warrant would be issued for her arrest. (The resident did not respond to this Scam)
4… One of our residents was having some remodeling work done on his house, and he was emailing his contractor back and forth with various instructions, etc. At one point, the resident received an email from his contractor, requesting a payment to be deposited in a Wells Fargo Bank account. The resident made the money transfer of $7,500. Days later he spoke to the contractor, and the contractor had not made a request for money.
The resident has known this contractor for some time and trusts him completely. Apparently someone was able to “Hack” into the resident’s computer, intercept and divert his email transmissions, and send this money request.
The point here is to always confirm via phone, any email request for money or personal information from anyone, including friends and relatives.
These “SCAMMERS” are clever !! Many times they have gathered your personal information from database hacking or programs like Facebook and can create a scenario in which even very smart people can be fooled !!
THINGS TO BE AWARE OF :
1. WHEN THE CALLER OR EMAIL SCAMMER CREATES A SENSE OF URGENCY !!
2. ANYTIME YOU ARE DIRECTED TO PAY ANYTHING VIA GIFT CARDS !!
3. NEVER GIVE OUT PERSONAL INFORMATION TO ANYONE,UNLESS YOU INITIATE THE CALL AND YOU KNOW THE PERSON !!
4. NEVER CLICK ON AN EMAIL “LINK” THAT YOU DON’T RECOGNIZE !!!
5. GOVERNMENT AGENCIES NEVER CALL YOU AND ASK FOR PERSONAL INFORMATION OR MONEY !!
Apparently there are some of our Sun City Residents who are not aware of the “SCAMMERS” and their tricks !! Pass this information around your village and tell your friends and relatives !!! You could save someone a lot of money and/or a lot of headaches !!
Click here for our flyer about scams. Print it out for friends who do not have a computer.
Prevent robocalls by registering at nomorobo.com. Help vulnerable friends to do this, too.
Barry Johnson
Neighborhood Watch Public Safety Liaison
916 434-6538