The Kennebec County Sheriff’s Office warned county residents of a scam attempting to phish Social Security information from victims by telling them they have a drug warrant in Texas.
Lt. Chris Read said in a Wednesday press release that his office has taken two complaints from people that received scam calls. The caller, who is described as a man, reportedly told them they have an active warrant in Texas and they need to “give the caller their Social Security number and date of birth in order to clear it up.”
Read said, in both of the complaints, the caller was very insistent and convincing. The sheriff’s office advised the victims to file a complaint with Federal Trade Commission. Read said neither scam victim has seen adverse effects yet.
“At this point no one has been scammed of any funds or had a credit card opened in their name; however this could have the potential to do so later on,” Read wrote.
Read said the calls could “possibly” originate from Texas.
The release said no one should “give out personal information to callers unless you are absolutely sure who you are talking to and that it is necessary.” Read wrote in the release that the numbers used by the scammers “do not offer much information” for police because they are computer-generated.
“It is a good rule of thumb that if you do not recognize the number (if you have caller ID) then do not answer it,” the release read. “If you do answer it and there is anything suspicious; hang up the phone.”
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