Phone scams surface again in Logan County
Logan County Sheriff's Office warns citizens to be cautious

[December 14, 2017] 

LINCOLN

The Logan County Sheriff’s Office would like to make our citizens aware of a series of current scams occurring in Logan County.

PHONE SCAMS

Electric Company Scam

Caller will state they are a representative of Ameren/Cilco and tell the homeowner they are months behind on their billing and power will be shut off immediately. The caller then tells the homeowner they are able to make a payment over the phone in order to keep the power from being shut off.

The Grandparent scam

Caller will pose as grandchild or family member of victim and say they need financial assistance and have victim wire money to Western Union or MoneyGram.
Caller poses as Police officer/lawyer frantically call saying grandchild in trouble needing financial assistance. Often caller will say the family member (child/grandchild) are in custody and need bond money.

IRS/government agency scam

Caller poses as representative of IRS/government agency saying you owe money/back taxes and if not sent, a warrant will be issued.

These callers will have either a local number or appear to be coming from legitimate businesses. This is a technique known as spoofing where the scam artist can make the phone number look as if it’s coming from local government or local phone numbers.

DOOR TO DOOR SCAMS

Be aware there have been documented attempts by subjects going door to door in the county representing themselves as employees of energy companies. These subjects attempt to gain personal information from the homeowner. They have also attempted to gain entry into the residence to speak with homeowners while requesting the use of restrooms or the use of the homeowner’s phone. Please notify the Logan County Sheriff’s Office immediately should you be approached by these individuals and do not allow access to your home or information.

COMPUTER SCAMS

1) Victim will receive a notice on their computer notifying them a virus has been located on your computer and they need to call Microsoft immediately. Once victim has called the number provided, the scammer will advise the victim they need to remotely access the victim’s computer in order to fix the problem. The scammer will then attempt to gain access to personal and financial information from the victim.

2) Facebook scams have become increasingly popular. A message will appear from what appears to be a friend contact asking if you have heard about them winning a significant amount of money. They will then attempt to gain access to your personal information or direct you to a site in order to obtain the information. These are accounts that have been hijacked and/or duplicated. While they appear to be from one of your contacts, they are actually scammers.

The Sheriff’s Office would like to remind citizens:

Never give personal or financial information to anyone over the phone

No government agency or law enforcement agency will ever ask for you to send money to avoid warrant/arrest/release of family member through money service

Always seek advice from trusted friend, family member, or law enforcement prior to sending money to anonymous sources or paying for doorstep/home improvement repairs

When in doubt, or if you have any concerns, contact law enforcement. We will always assist.

[Chief Deputy Mark Landers]