Watch out! A new scam has recently been reported in the North Florida area. The scammer calls and identifies themselves as an employee of a nearby bank, and claims that they are with the fraud department; they may claim to come from a bank the victim has accounts with. The phone number and caller ID will say the bank name and will appear to have the correct local number. The scammer will inform the intended victim of several alleged charges that have been placed on the victim's card. The scammer will even provide the victim with the correct card number, and will provide dates and places where the card has been used. The scammer will ask if these charges are accurate and approved by the victim. Once the victim says they are not, the scammer informs the victim that someone has hacked their account and is using the victim's card or card number. The See SCAM page 3 scammer will offer refunds for the fraudulent charges, but says that a code sent to the victim's phone or email must be verified first. Once the code has been approved, the scammer says the refunds will show up on their account. The scammer will advise the victim not to access their bank account for a while or provide any information concerning the bank account to anyone else. However, once the code is approved by the victim, the scammer will have access to their card, and can access the victim's bank account to remove or transfer money. The scammer can even access any mobile payment services the victim may have, such as Cash App, Zelle or Venmo. Here are some ways you can protect yourself against this scam: -If a company, business or agency contacts you, hang up and call the official number yourself to verify if the call actually came from them. -Never click on any links or codes that are sent to you. -Never provide any personal or account information, including passwords, to individuals who are not known. If you believe you have been a victim of this scam, please contact the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office by calling (850) 997-2523.
