Police Department Scam Hits Minnesota
It looks like despite the new year, scammers haven't resolved to quitting their ways. A major scam has been reported in Minnesota and this time, it is just a few hours from the Duluth area. This one seems pretty easy to fall for.
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The scam was reported in Inver Grove Heights, with details of the scam being shared online by the Inver Grove Heights Police Department. They shared all of the details on Tuesday (January 2nd), just after the first day of the year. Sigh.
Scammers are really coming in hot in the new year, with the Police Department sharing that they learned of one particular scammer 'exploiting' their department and corresponding information to try and deceive locals in the area.
According to their post, they are posing as a member of the Inver Grove Heights Police Department. They even have the real phone number for the department, meaning people are more likely to fall for this scam.
So what happens next? The Inver Grove Heights Police Department says the scammer claims they have an 'urgent legal matter' to discuss with the person on the other end of the line and tells them they need to call back right away. They even have a fake voicemail set up, lending more credibility to this scam.
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Most scams these days are a ploy to get someone's banking information or other personal information. There really is a scam for just about everything so this particular one does not surprise me. However, it seems like the scammer has done a lot of homework, making this scam more believable than others.
When all is said and done, never give out any personal information out over the phone, text message or by any other medium. The Inver Grove Heights Police Department ended their post by reminding everyone to spread the word and know that they would never ask for payment over the phone in any way, shape or form. Sigh.