Scam Prevention and Resources

Scam Prevention 

One of the highest priorities for the Central Point Police Department is crime prevention, which has been defined as, “the anticipation, recognition and appraisal of a crime risk and the initiation of some action to remove or reduce it."

Our department takes many proactive steps to reduce the crime in our community and keep our citizens safe. One such way is by educating our community with safety tips on how to avoid or become victims of the ever growing scam issues. Scams can occur in many different ways, including by email, phone calls, text messages, and letters. Our department takes steps each day to prevent these types of crimes in our community.

Common Scams

From the many complaints we have received over the years, some common scams include the following:

ARREST WARRANT

This scam has become prevalent in the last few years, with different variations.  The caller (or recording) will state the person they’ve contacted has a warrant out for their arrest (the reason given varies) and that a certain amount of money needs to be paid or the involved party will go to jail. The caller will indicate that they are calling from the local Police Department, Sheriff’s office or Courthouse.  The scammer may spoof the incoming phone number to appear as if the call is coming from an official source, or use the real names of officers or government employees to appear more credible.  

Typically, the scammer will ask their target to purchase Google cards or similar gift cards and then provide the caller the numbers for them.  This is a SCAM.  The Central Point Police Department does not seek payment of fines in lieu of arrest, nor do we notify parties by phone of outstanding arrest.  Additionally, using gift cards to pay for purchases offers no payment protection and no way to trace payment.  We suggest hanging up immediately, blocking the number (if possible),  and contacting the Central Point Police Department with any questions. 

PUBLISHER’S CLEARING HOUSE

For these scams, what generally happens is you will receive a phone call or a letter stating you have won the Publisher’s Clearing House and will need to send money in order to claim the winnings. These scammers will request you send them money to cover the cost of taxes, lawyers, shipping, handling, or a plethora of seemingly legitimate costs associated with such a large amount of money but they have NO intention of ever sending money back. The general rule for this scam (and many others like it) is “if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.”

IRS OR SOCIAL SECURITY 

This scam typically involves an individual calling on the phone, stating they are from the IRS (Internal Revue Service) or the Social Security Administration and that you need to send money or a warrant will be put out for your arrest. The IRS or SSA does not make phone calls for these situations and will not be contacting you in this way. If you want to confirm you are not in any trouble with these agency, contact your local IRS or SSA agency via a phone number or address NOT provided to you by the caller. For more information on IRS scams, visit https://www.irs.gov/uac/tax-scams-consumer-alerts or https://www.ssa.gov/scam.

CRAIGSLIST

Many of these scams start with a buyer contacting a seller who then claims they are looking to purchase a good. They send a check worth far more than the cost of the good the seller has listed and ask the seller to send them back the extra money from the check. There are some other ways Craigslist scammers attempt to obtain money from people online but this is the most common way. For more information about Craigslist scams, visit https://www.craigslist.org/about/scams​.

tips to avoid scams

All of the above tactics are intended to cause fear and panic in the victim which scammers know will make the person they are defrauding more likely to provide information over the phone and/or provide payment without verifying the information they have been told is accurate. If you are unsure of the validity of a phone call you may receive from a source such as those listed above, we encourage you to hang up the phone on the party you are speaking with, seek out contact information for the entity they are pretending to be (such as your grandchild or the Social Security Administration), and confirm whether the information the original caller provided you is accurate. Importantly, do not seek confirmation of validity through contact information the initial caller provides you. If they offer you a phone number to someone at their business who can “confirm they are who they say they are” do not call that number. Find a number through alternative means such as a phone book or the internet since the number they provide will likely be to another person who is in on the scam.

Also note that more often than not, if a stranger is asking for money it’s likely a scam. (And in some scams, the scammer pretends to be someone you know via Facebook or an old acquaintance. A good rule of thumb is to be cautious or skeptical if ANY person is asking you for money that you weren’t expecting to reach out to you in this capacity.)

Never provide any personal information to anyone who you do not know or are not certain is someone you know, whether they are contacting you over the phone, email, social media, mail, etc. 

RESOURCES FOR SENIOR CITIZENS

A comprehensive resource guide for senior citizens being scammed has been put together by retireguide.com. If you or someone you know is a senior citizen who would like more information about how to avoid and handle scams should you be affected by one, please see their resource page at https://www.retireguide.com/guides/senior-scams/.

REPORTING OPTIONS

Lastly, if you believe you might have received one of these phone calls where you provided personal information but didn’t get to the stage where you sent money, make sure to check your credit report periodically in order to verify you don’t have any unknown accounts that may have been opened in your name. You may also visit https://www.justice.gov/fraudtaskforce for resources on how to prevent and report fraud.

If you are a victim of any scam and have been financially affected or have given out any personal information, please call our non-emergency dispatch number to report the crime at (541) 776-7206. To file a complaint about an internet scam, contact https://www.ic3.gov/default.aspx