Martin County Sheriff: Beware of Scam calls circulating throughout our area

Martin County Sheriff: Beware of Scam calls circulating throughout our area

Martin County, Fl (treasurecoast.com)- The Martin County Sheriff has asked the public to be beware of scam calls that are circulating throughout our area.

Here are the details:
Please be aware of scam calls circulating this evening. The scammer this evening is telling victims he is Lt. Bill Dowdy with the Martin County Sheriff’s Office and that the victim has an open court case. He is providing a “case number” and telling victims to purchase a green dot card/Visa gift card for $2,500.00 and must call the phone number back and give the scammer the card number.
The Martin County Sheriff’s Office is NOT a collection agency and will never call and threaten you with an arrest if you don’t pay money to clear up an issue. EVEN IF THE CALLER LEAVES A RETURN PHONE NUMBER THAT ANSWERS, “MARTIN COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE”. Those scam numbers have a VPN (Virtual Private Network), are spoofed so their origins cannot be traced.
This is very important information and we are asking that you please share it. The terrible part of this is that victims are so scared, they pay. Lets help put an end to these scams.

Four Signs That It’s a Scam

1. Scammers PRETEND to be from an organization you know.

Scammers often pretend to be contacting you on behalf of the government. They might use a real name, like the Social Security Administration, the IRS, or Medicare, or make up a name that sounds official. Some pretend to be from a business you know, like a utility company, a tech company, or even a charity asking for donations.

They use technology to change the phone number that appears on your caller ID. So the name and number you see might not be real.

2. Scammers say there’s a PROBLEM or a PRIZE.

They might say you’re in trouble with the government. Or you owe money. Or someone in your family had an emergency. Or that there’s a virus on your computer.

Some scammers say there’s a problem with one of your accounts and that you need to verify some information.

Others will lie and say you won money in a lottery or sweepstakes but have to pay a fee to get it.

3. Scammers PRESSURE you to act immediately.

Scammers want you to act before you have time to think. If you’re on the phone, they might tell you not to hang up so you can’t check out their story.

They might threaten to arrest you, sue you, take away your driver’s or business license, or deport you. They might say your computer is about to be corrupted.

4. Scammers tell you to PAY in a specific way.

They often insist that you pay by using cryptocurrency, by wiring money through a company like MoneyGram or Western Union, using a payment app, or by putting money on a gift card and then giving them the numbers on the back of the card.

Some will send you a check (that will later turn out to be fake), then tell you to deposit it and send them money.

Thanks for reading. Please leave your thoughts in the comments below and share this article with others so more people can join the conversation. Also let me know what you would like to see: local news, events or local info.

 

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  • Posted 2 years ago

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