A telephone scam has surfaced in Onondaga County, said Sheriff Kevin E. Walsh.
In the scam, a caller claims to be an officer with the New York Sheriff’s Office and tells the listener they are delinquent in a debt payment, Sheriff’s deputies said.
The caller says that failure to make a payment will result in an arrest and proceeds to “confirm” the listener’s information by asking for personal information such as date of birth and Social Security number. The caller then encourages the listener to wire money to an overseas address.
Sheriff Walsh offers the following tips to avoid being the victim of a scam:
- Never provide personal information such as Social Security number and date of birth to a caller.
- Never provide credit card information or other bank account information.
- Never send money to unknown person or unverified business.
For further information on protecting yourself from scam, visit usa.gov or fbi.gov.
