Orange City, Iowa — The Sioux County Sheriff’s Office is advising of two scams they have encountered recently, and they’re explaining them for the public.
The first scam involves a call from someone claiming to be with the “Spirit Lake Police Department.” The caller stated that the person on the phone had a warrant for their arrest because they did not show up for jury duty. The caller tells the victim that for a mere $5,000, they could get that warrant recalled. The person who received the scam call then called the Spirit Lake Police to ask if they had received any calls reporting this activity. We are told that the Spirit Lake Police reported they had taken similar calls. One of the reporting parties said that the scammer even knew some of their personal information, such as address and family member names. While most people would be able to find that information through an internet search, the Sheriff’s Office says they felt that elderly citizens may fall victim to this type of scam.
The second scam that was encountered by the Sioux County Sheriff’s Office involves the reception of a fictitious e-mail from the Security Administration informing them that their “SSN has been terminated.” There was also an attached PDF to the message. In this scam, if the recipient clicks on links in the message, they will be prompted to enter personal banking information. This has been reported to representatives of the Social Security Administration, who were already aware of it, according to Sioux County Sheriff’s officials. They tell us that the e-mail looked “official” enough that sheriff’s office personnel would suspect the scammers could be successful.
They tell us that if you receive scam calls or emails like these, don’t give out any information. If you live in Sioux County, contact the Sioux County Public Safety Center Communications Center at 712-737-3307 and an officer will be happy to help you determine the validity the situation. If you live elsewhere, call local law enforcement on their non-emergency line.
