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发帖数: 901 | 1 The phone rings, you pick it up, and the caller identifies himself as an
officer of the court. He says you failed to report for jury duty and that a
warrant is out for your arrest. You explain that you never received a jury
duty notice. To clear it up, the caller says he’ll need some information
for “verification purposes” – your birth date, social security number,
and maybe even a credit card number.
THIS IS WHEN YOU SHOULD HANG UP THE PHONE. IT’S A SCAM!
Jury duty scams have been around for years, but we have seen a resurgence in
recent months. Communities in more than a dozen states have issued public
warnings about cold calls from people claiming to be court officials seeking
personal information. As a rule, court officers never ask for confidential
information over the phone; they generally correspond with prospective
jurors via mail.
The scam’s bold simplicity may be what makes it so effective. Facing the
unexpected threat of arrest, victims are caught off guard and may be quick
to part with some information to quickly diffuse the situation. “They get
scared first,” says an FBI Special Agent in the Minneapolis field office
who has heard the complaints. “They get people saying, ‘Oh my gosh, I’m
not a criminal! What’s going on?’” That’s when the scammer dangles a
solution – a fine, payable by credit card that will clear up the problem.
With enough information, scammers can assume your identity and empty your
bank accounts.
“It seems like a very simple scam,” the agent adds. The trick is putting
people on the defensive, then reeling them back in with the promise of a
clean slate. “It’s kind of ingenious. It’s social engineering.”
In recent months, communities in Florida, New York, Minnesota, Illinois,
Colorado, Oregon, California, Virginia, Oklahoma, Arizona and New Hampshire
reported scams or posted warnings or press releases on their local websites.
The federal court system has issued a warning on the scam and urged people
to call their local District Court office if they receive suspicious calls.
The FBI also suggests that victims call their local FBI field office.
The jury scam is a simple variation of the identity-theft ploys that have
proliferated in recent years as personal information and good credit have
become thieves’ preferred prey, particularly on the Internet. Scammers
might tap your information to make a purchase on your credit card, but could
just as easily sell your information to the highest bidder on the Internet
’s black market.
PROTECTING YOURSELF IS THE KEY: Never give out personal information when you
receive an unsolicited phone call or email request. |
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