At least a dozen people across Somerset County and the Waterville area reported telephone scams Tuesday to police, saying they involved callers requesting payment information and Social Security numbers.
The towns that have been affected so far include Fairfield, Oakland and Skowhegan. Local police officials from the three towns indicated that they don’t think that anyone has given out the requested information or suffered any losses.
Steve McCausland, spokesman for the Maine Department of Public Safety, said he doesn’t think it is a statewide problem.
“I haven’t been made aware of it, but I have not asked about it, either,” he said.
Skowhegan police Chief David Bucknam noted that the calls have come from two numbers with California area codes claiming to be the Social Security Administration and the Internal Revenue Service. He warned people to stay vigilant about suspicious messages.
“The IRS and Social Security (are) not going to ask you to pay for anything over the phone with a credit card or have you go out and buy any type of money cards at Wal-Mart or any other place that sells them to pay off bills,” Bucknam said. “People need to be aware this time of year that people are scamming even more and they should be diligent and not converse with these folks.”
Bucknam said he did not have any details about whether the caller had a male, female or automated voice.
Skowhegan police received at least three reports about such calls on Tuesday, Fairfield logged eight and Oakland noted more generally that it had gotten “a bunch” of scam complaints.
McCausland warned that both landlines and cellphones can receive fraudulent calls.
“If you’ve got a telephone, you’re going to get these calls,” he said. “For a time, those who discontinued their landlines and got cellphones thought they were immune, but now they’ve got a hold of those cellphone numbers, too.”
Officials urged people to not engage with suspicious callers and continue reporting all cases to law enforcement.
“In this day and age, any unsolicited call coming in or telephone calls asking for any personal info is immediately suspect and likely a scam,” McCausland said. “Hang up immediately and never give personal information out over the phone.”
Meg Robbins — 861-9239
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