Carson City Sheriff's Office warns community of current Scams and Frauds
The Carson City Sheriff’s Office regularly receives complaints of scams and fraudulent activity.
This public nuisance and criminal empire provides a unique challenge.
Some common scams include phony calls from scammers who claim to be Carson City Sheriff’s Office employees, requesting gift cards for payments, and posting fake rentals in order to receive cash deposits.
Additional scams include lottery winnings in which the winner is asked to provide funds, threats of IRS or Social Security action, and computer repair offers in order to access private information.
Remembering and sharing these tips can help protect you and your loved ones from identity theft and financial loss:
- Don’t give out private information over the phone
- Public servants & officials will never ask for your social security number over the phone
- Public servants & officials will never ask for money over the phone
- Gift cards are not a legitimate form of payment or compensation
- Validate rental arrangements, preferably in person, before sending rent money
- Validate companies through the Better Business Bureau before use
- If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is
The Carson City Sheriff’s Office is readily available to answer questions and assist the public in any way we can.
There are also several resource sites available for identity theft and fraud information, as well as federal reporting for scam/fraud incidents online.
http://WWW.IC3.GOV and http://WWW.FBI.GOV are excellent sites for reporting internet crimes and phone scams, and they have additional helpful tips for protecting sensitive information. The Better Business Bureau can also be easily utilized from their site at WWW.BBB.ORG.