Social Security scams on the increase

There seems to be no end to the type of scams that attempts to prey on the uninformed and elderly in our community. Liberty County Sheriff’s Investigator Ann Marie Mitchell recently talked to a citizen who received a recorded telephone call from a person saying he was with a police department but the agency was not named. The caller claimed he was calling regarding their Social Security benefits.

At that point a person comes on the line advising that the victim’s Social Security benefits will be suspended unless an issue with their Social Security number can be resolved. The purpose, of course, is to get the victim to give out their Social Security number.

The scammer called from the phone number of 1-838-203-3889 but, of course, the scammers change these number every few calls so it is rare that anyone will answer these numbers if a person tried to call it back.

The Social Security Administration says they never call anyone for this type of information and if a citizen receives such calls and are alarmed they should call the Social Security Administration Office to confirm their information.

The Liberty County Sheriff’s Office reminds the public to never give out personal information over the phone and to not be pressured to do so. The Sheriff’s Office recommends that a victim report the call to their local law enforcement agency and to also report the call to the Fraud Information Center at 1-800-876-7060. If a person has an internet connection they may visit Fraud Watch at www.fraud.org for the latest alerts.