Cook County Sheriff Thomas J. Dart is warning of a phone scam in which the caller claims to be a member of the Cook County Sheriff’s Office.
In this scam, the caller makes notification that there is an allegation against the victim and that payment is required. A spoofing application is used to make it appear on caller ID that the phone call is coming from a Cook County Sheriff’s Office number.
The Sheriff’s Office does not make such notifications by phone nor does the office ask for payment over the phone.
Sheriff Dart offers the following tips to avoid becoming a phone scam victim:
- If you believe the call is suspicious, hang up.
- Never give personal information, such as social security or bank account numbers, over the phone.
- Legitimate police employees do not ask that payments be made via pre-paid debit cards.
- If the caller claims to be from a specific agency, hang up and call that agency to determine if there is a legitimate reason to contact you. Do not use the phone number the caller gives you.
Sheriff Dart asks anyone who believes they are victim of this scam to call Sheriff’s Police at 708-865-4896.