Legal IQ Tips: Consumer Protection
Over the past several months, I’ve had an increased number of clients coming to me because they were victimized by a scam. Many of them involve emails or money wire transfers. That said, there are all types of scams out there and my next few posts are going to focus on some new scams that I have been hearing about. Anyone can fall victim, it doesn’t matter if you are young or old. My hope is that sharing this information that was passed on to me will save you from falling victim.
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“Utility Scam”
Another concerning scam is the “utility bill scam” which has become far reaching and popular.
This scam comes in the way of a phone call. The individual on the other end claims to be a representative from a utility company or the like. Electric, gas, or water, the scammers don’t discriminate against what type of utility they use as their bait, they just focus in on a utility that you have in your home.
There are a few different scams that fall into this category, but the scammers end goal is the same; to get your personal information, your identity, to get untraceable money, or to obtain banking account information to steal money.
One form of the scam is an individual calling and stating that “the company” has an offer to help you cut your utility bill. These scammers often say it’s for your electric bill. The caller says that they just need your utility account information to verify your account before they can proceed and there you have it; your confidential and personal information are now in their hands.
In another version of the scam, the caller may tell you that you have an extremely overdue bill. They start threatening to disconnect services immediately and request payment at that time. The unsuspecting individual will have offered up money they will never get back and possibly provided personal account information to scammers who will make withdrawals, over the next few days, well in excess of the “unpaid bill”.
A final version of the scam is the caller indicating that there are federal assistance programs that you qualify for. Again, they pretend to be the utility company and indicate that they “just need you to verify your account information”. They obtain your personal and share information with the hackers who can use it to steal your identity and money.
While many people are now aware of the IRS phone call scams, the Utility scams are less commonly known but are becoming more and more prevalent. Just as with the other scams I have mentioned, the caller is either “selling you something too good to be true” or “pushing an urgent matter”.
For more on the utility scams, check out these Forbes and CBS articles.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/johnwasik/2017/03/19/scam-alert-how-to-avoid-utility-fraud/#790220894459
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/dont-get-financially-shocked-by-a-utility-scam/
As always, it’s better to be safe than sorry. Never provide information to someone who is calling you unsolicited, and if you ever get an unsolicited call from a utility company, just hang up! You can call back their main line, and ask about the programs they are offering or if you have a late bill.
If you believe a loved one has been contacted by a scammer, contact the Rhode Island Attorney General’s Office: (401) 274-4400 or consumers@riag.ri.gov
I’m going to take a break from posting on scams until I head back out to the South Kingstown Senior Center in Mid-October.
For now, stay safe and don’t hesitate to contact me if you have questions on these scams, or any other scams.
