Community
Alert
(02/03/2006)

Citizens beware! A recent rash of attempted identity theft and fraud has area residents worried. An anonymous caller has been contacting people over the telephone in an attempt to gain banking information.

Recent incidents have indicated that the "Phishers" are trying to gain checking account and routing numbers. The callers usually do not identify themselves but have been known to claim affiliation with a government agency. The scam artist offers to help protect the citizen's bank account if they will give him/her the account numbers.

NEVER give information like this over the phone. Once you give an account number and a routing number the criminal will have unlimited access to your checking or savings account and will not hestitate to take all of your money.

This scam is referred to as "phishing." The caller is trying to ellicit information from the victim on a random basis.

If you receive a phone call like this, try to use Caller ID to obtain a phone number and question the caller. Demand to know what company or agency they represent. Ask for their names, id numbers, etc... This will usually scare the caller off and they'll move along to an easier target.

For more information on Phishing and other identify theft or fraud scams you can visit the FTC's website at:

http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/credit/idtheft.htm

The US Postal Inspection Service also has some great information on phone scams, postal scams and other consumer fraud.

http://www.usps.com/postalinspectors/

Specifically, this link relates to telemarketing fraud. It's a FREE DVD!

Click Here

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