The Maine Judicial Branch issued a warning to the public Wednesday about a telephone scam involving con artists claiming to work for the courts, aiming to get personal information for identity theft.

“In this scam, someone calls, pretending to be a court official, and says that the person has outstanding parking or moving violation tickets. The caller claims to work for the courts,” Judicial Branch spokeswoman Mary Ann Lynch said in a written announcement.

The scammers use a caller ID trick to make it falsely appear that the calls are originating from a courthouse. Similar scams have been reported in other states.

Lynch said no court employee would ever call and ask for personal information such as a Social Security number, date of birth or credit card information over the telephone. She said anyone receiving such a call should not give any information and should hang up.