Phone scam making its way around Baton Rouge
Andrew Capasso POSTED: Friday, July 13, 2012 - 5:28pm
UPDATED: Monday, July 16, 2012 - 5:45pm
BATON ROUGE, LA (NBC33) — The Better Business Bureau says a phone scam is targeting people in Baton Rouge and more than 100 people have been called so far.
Here’s how it works.
The victim gets a call from someone claiming they have a government grant to help pay with utility bills. That’s when the victim gives the thieves banking information and is told up to a thousand dollars is on the way.
Though the money shows up in the victim’s accounts, it is taken back very quickly. But by then the victim's checking account is already overdrawn.
“If you get a call from somebody you don't know personally who they are and can not verify who they are, the bottom line is never give personal information,” Jim Stalls, Better Business Bureau, said.
Comments News Comments
Certainly a scam! Unlike products telemarketers call you about, grants and financial assistance are things you apply for. And it's highly impossible to just get picked and receive money from the government. Clearly, it's a ploy designed to tempt you into giving them what they'll ask for.
There's been a lot of this scam being reported at http://www.callercenter.com already and I think, with continuous updates about them, scammers don't stand a chance anymore.
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