Scams On The Rise In Annapolis: Police

ANNAPOLIS, MD — Residents are being warned to watch out for scams being carried out by phone and email. The Annapolis Police Department has received several reports, including one where a caller identified themselves as an out-of-state law enforcement officer.

"This fake officer threatened the victim with criminal prosecution and fines. The victim was threatened that their Social Security account was going to be frozen and then told to purchase gift cards and send photos of the cards to the caller. The scammers tell the victim to stay on the phone with them during these purchases and if store employees question the purchases the scammers provide the victim with excuses to explain the purchases," the Annapolis Police Department shared in a report.

The police department explained that scammers will "pressure you to stay on the phone with them, they will ask you for account and personal information."

"You should not provide information like this over the phone, especially on calls you did not initiate to verified phone numbers. Buying gift cards and providing those numbers to someone over the phone is a clear sign of a scam. The Social Security Administration will never call to threaten your benefits," the department stated.

Another recent scam reported to the Annapolis Police Department involved what seemed to be the victim's friend sending an email informing the victim of an opportunity to win unclaimed money from the IRS. To win the money, the victim had to send money to the scammer.

"The victim and scammer then began communicating by text message and more money was requested. The emails and text messages from the scammer contained spelling and grammatical errors that are common in scam messages," the police department shared.

For more information about scams like these, the police department suggested people check out the following websites for details and how else to protect themselves:

• https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/blog/2019/09/social-security-not-trying-take-your-benefits
• https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/tax-scams-consumer-alerts

According to the Federal Trade Commision, scams take many forms, but they share patterns of making similar promises and threats, or demand that a victim pay in a certain way. According to the FTC, here are ways to recognize a phone scam:

There is no prize

The caller might say you were “selected” for an offer or that you’ve won a lottery. But if you have to pay to get the prize, it's not a prize.

You won’t be arrested

Scammers might pretend to be law enforcement or a federal agency. They might say you’ll be arrested, fined, or deported if you don’t pay taxes or some other debt right away. The goal is to scare you into paying. But real law enforcement and federal agencies won’t call and threaten you.

You don’t need to decide now

Most legitimate businesses will give you time to think their offer over and get written information about it before asking you to commit. Take your time. Don’t get pressured into making a decision on the spot.

There’s never a good reason to send cash or pay with a gift card

Scammers will often ask you to pay in a way that makes it hard for you to get your money back — by wiring money, putting money on a gift card, prepaid card or cash reload card, or using a money transfer app. Anyone who asks you to pay that way is a scammer.

Government agencies aren’t calling to confirm your sensitive information

It’s never a good idea to give out sensitive information like your Social Security number to someone who calls you unexpectedly, even if they say they’re with the Social Security Administration or IRS.

You shouldn’t be getting all those calls

If a company is selling something, it needs your written permission to call you with a robocall. And if you’re on the National Do Not Call Registry, you shouldn’t get live sales calls from companies you haven’t done business with before. Those calls are illegal. If someone is already breaking the law calling you, there’s a good chance it’s a scam. At the very least, it’s a company you don’t want to do business with.

• Scammers might obtain your email and contact information by hacking into a business. Once they have your information, they'll send an email that seems to come from the business, directing you where to send money. So, how can you spot these scams?
• Never wire money to anyone who emails – or calls – and asks you to. Instead, check it out. Contact the company through a number or email address you know is real.
• Don’t use phone numbers or links in the email.
• Don’t open email attachments, even from someone you know, unless you’re expecting it. Opening attachments can put malware on your computer.