FRAUD ALERT | Do not give out your information over the phone

||| BY ERIC PETER, SHERIFF OF SAN JUAN COUNTY |||

Dear community members,

The San Juan County Sheriff’s Office dispatch center received several calls today from citizens claiming that someone called them and attempted to extort money from them by claiming to be from the Sheriff’s Office.

All reports say the man on the phone claimed to be Sergeant Kimble or Sergeant Jason Kimble from the San Juan County Sheriff’s Office. This person tells people that there is a warrant out for their arrest and that they can pay money over the phone to avoid being arrested on the warrant. Of the five to seven calls we received today regarding this, unfortunately one victim suffered financial loss.

THIS WILL NOT COME FROM ANYONE AT THE SAN JUAN COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE. The Sheriff’s Office will NEVER call people to tell them there is a warrant out for their arrest and then demand money to settle the case. Never give money to anyone over the phone who tells you there is a warrant out for your or a family member’s arrest or that they are in jail.

This person spoofs the caller ID phone number to make it look like the call is coming from the Sheriff’s Office non-emergency number 360-378-4151.

Caller ID spoofing is when a caller intentionally falsifies the information sent to your caller ID display to conceal their identity. Spoofing is often used to trick someone into revealing valuable personal information so that it can be used for fraudulent purposes or sold illegally, or to get you to pay money to resolve a legal issue such as a fake arrest warrant.

If you receive a call from someone claiming to be from the Sheriff’s Office, do not give them any information, hang up and notify the real San Juan County Sheriff’s Office.

Tips to avoid spoofing scams:

• You may not be able to immediately tell if an incoming call is fake. Be extremely cautious with Responding to all requests for personal data.
• Do not answer calls from unknown numbers. If you do receive such a call, hang up immediately.
• If you answer the call and the caller – or a recording – asks you to press a button to stop receiving further calls, you should simply hang up. Scammers often use this trick to identify potential victims.
• Do not respond to questions, especially those that can be answered with “yes” or “no.”
• When you receive an unexpected call or if you have the slightest suspicion, never give out personal information such as account numbers, social security numbers, mother’s maiden name, passwords or other identifying information.
• If you receive a solicitation from someone claiming to represent a business or government agency, hang up and call the phone number on your bank statement, in the phone book, or on the business or government agency’s website to verify the authenticity of the solicitation. You will usually receive a written statement in the mail before you receive a call from a legitimate source, especially if the caller is demanding payment.
• Be cautious if you are pressured to give out information immediately.
• If you have a voicemail account with your phone service, be sure to set a password for it. Some voicemail services are preset to give you access if you call from your own phone number. A hacker could spoof your home phone number and gain access to your voicemail if you don’t set a password.
• Check with your phone provider to see if they have call blocking tools, and learn about apps you can download to your mobile device to block unwanted calls. For information about available robocall blocking tools, visit fcc.gov/robocalls.

You can also find more information about spoofing and spoofing scams on the FCC website.