Scam Prevention
The Jackson County Sheriff's Office continues to warn residents of phone scams!
We continue to receive complaints on a daily basis from citizens who have received a scam phone call. These scams are sophisticated and the caller is often quite convincing. If they sense you are not falling for the scam, they often become aggressive and threatening.
The most common phone scams reported in the Jackson County area continue to be:
- A caller claiming to be from the IRS who states you owe money and demand you to make payment immediately or threatens your arrest! The IRS never calls! For more on this scam, visit the IRS's website at : http://www.irs.gov/uac/
Newsroom/Scam-Phone-Calls- Continue-IRS-Unveils-New- Video-to-Warn-Taxpayers - A caller claiming to be from Publisher's Clearing House who says you have won but need to wire money first to claim your prize. For more on this scam, visit the PCH website at:http://info.pch.com/
consumer-information/tips-a- warning-signs - Grandparent Scam: A grandparent receives a frantic call from someone they believe to be their grandchild. The supposed grandchild sounds distressed and may be calling from a noisy location. The supposed grandchild claims to be involved in some type of trouble while traveling such as being arrested or in a car accident or needing emergency car repairs, and asks the grandparent to immediately wire money to post bail or pay for medical treatment or car repairs. The scammer typically asks for several thousand dollars, and may even call back again several hours or days later asking for more money. He or she may claim embarrassment about the alleged trouble and ask the grandparent to keep it a secret. For more info on this scam and other variations of it, visit the FBI website at: http://www.fbi.gov/news/
stories/2012/april/ grandparent_040212
Never provide personal information like credit card numbers, Social Security numbers, or bank account information over the phone unless you know that the call is legitimate. Never wire money to someone you don't know. If you do not want to receive unsolicited phone calls, register your home and mobile phone numbers with the National Do Not Call Registry. This won’t stop all unsolicited calls, but it will stop most. If your number is on the registry and you still get calls, they’re probably from scammers ignoring the law. Don't rely on caller ID to verify the origin of a phone call. Phone scammers often use technology to manipulate the originating number. The call may appear as though it is an area call, but in reality it is coming from overseas or Canada and is part of their hoax.
If you receive a phone call that you believe is a scam, hang up and call the Sheriff's Office at 507-847-4420
For more excellent information on the various types of scams and how to deal with them, visit the Federal Trade Commission website at: http://www.consumer.ftc.gov/