Scams affecting area businesses

   Cass County Sheriff Tom Burch reports that the Cass County Sheriff’s Office has received and investigated reports of a scam directed at and affecting area businesses. In both reported incidents, a caller (no caller ID) contacts a business and identifies/posing himself as “Cass County Sheriff’s Office” with a Case number. The caller requests that the victim give them their cell number and only communicate with them through their cellular phone and not to discuss the call with other individuals. In both reported incidents, the caller is “phishing” for businesses and account information and creates a scenario requesting the worker take cash from the business to settle the fraud report and transfer the money to the caller in the form of a cash pre-paid card or Western Union transfer. The fraud continues with the caller attempting to access and transfer the employee’s money through commonly used “cash apps” on smart phones. In one incident, the caller was suspicious of the call and ended the call, in a second report, the employee followed through with the request of the scammer and several thousand dollars was transferred, at a loss to the business and the individual. Initial investigation indicates that the scam is tracked to a foreign country. It is extremely difficult to refund money that’s added to such gift cards and apps, which is why that’s almost always the request from scammers.

   The Cass County Sheriff Office or any police department, will never call you to ask you to provide finances of any sort to them under the threat of arrest. If you’re ever unsure about the legitimacy of a call from someone claiming to be law enforcement, hang up and then call your local law enforcement agency directly. Do not buy a pre-paid credit card, transfer money, or use an app in response to this call and do not provide any information.

   Sheriff Burch reminds you to follow these tips to help avoid falling victim to a telephone scam:

   • Be suspicious of callers who demand immediate payments.

   • Never give out personal or financial information to unsolicited callers, including account numbers, social security numbers, passwords or other identifying information.

   • Never wire money, provide debt or credit card numbers or Green Dot MoneyPak card numbers to someone you do not know.

   • If you get an inquiry from someone who says they represent a company or a government agency seeking personal information, hang up and call the phone number on your account statement or agency’s website to verify the authenticity of the request.

   • Don’t answer calls from numbers you don’t know. With spoofing becoming more common, question the number on the caller ID. Be cautious and verify the person on the other end of the phone.