Scammers are still pretending to be police officers, calling you to say you’ve missed jury duty and need to pay a fine. But now, some of them are taking it a step further, directing you to fake websites to enter your personal information — all to steal your money and data.
Here’s how the scam works:
It begins with a call that seems to come from a local police officer (but it’s not). They claim you missed jury duty (even though you probably didn’t) and threaten to arrest you unless you visit a website to pay the fine (which isn’t real).
The website looks official, with a URL that sounds legitimate and a government seal that appears authentic (but it’s all fake). The site will ask for your date of birth and Social Security number to “check the amount you owe.” They may demand you pay up to $10,000 on the site or direct you to a “government kiosk” (which doesn’t exist) to pay with cryptocurrency. But all of this is a scam.
Here’s what you need to know:
- Real law enforcement officers will never call you and threaten arrest if you hang up. Even if the caller ID looks like it’s from your local police department, scammers can fake this too.
- Only scammers will insist that you can only pay with cash, gift cards, payment apps, cryptocurrency, or wire transfer services like Western Union or MoneyGram.
- If you get a call like this, just hang up.
Don’t fall for it — protect your personal information and your money!
