While
identity theft is increasingly becoming a high-tech crime, low-tech
cons still abound. Take, for
example, the resurgence of an old identity theft scheme, dubbed the
"Jury Duty Scam" by the FBI, that's making a comeback.
The con works like this: someone
identifying himself a court official calls your residence claiming
to be from your county courthouse. He says you've averted your
civic obligation to report for jury duty. The scammer might
even have spoofing technology that will make it appear on our caller
ID that he is indeed calling from a local courthouse.
The next part of the con is key, as it plays
to the emotion that can most cloud our judgment: fear. The
caller says there is an arrest warrant being issued for you.
When the potential victim says that there must some kind of mistake,
and that no notification was ever received, the callers offers to
"help" clear up the situation. In a friendly manner, he
acknowledges that maybe a mistake was made. To verify your
identity against the warrant-for- arrest list your name is
supposedly on, he asks for things like your Social Security number,
birth date, and other personal identifying information.
The FBI reports that the scam's bold
simplicity may be what makes it so effective. Facing the
unexpected threat of arrest, victims are caught off guard and may be
quick to disclose information to defuse the situation. This
also includes credit card "solutions" to pay supposed fines.
On the FBI's Web site, a field agent wrote:
"The trick is putting people on the defensive, then reeling them
back in with the promise of a clean slate." This is where the
scammer might offer to clear up the situation with a credit card
payment. "It's kind of ingenious. It's social engineering,"
the agent said.
The FBI recently confirmed that this
scam is alive and well, with more than dozen states reporting
incidents of cold calls from people posing as court officials.
It also says, as a rule, that legitimate jury-duty notifications and
"no-show" summonses are mailed
individuals. If there are rare
occasions for phone contact, court officials wouldn't ask for the
type of personal information that scammers do. In addition,
they'd likely call during business hours, not later at night.
That's exactly what happened to Joyce
Karasienski of Sterling Heights, Michigan, when she received her
Jury Duty Scam call right before sitting down to a family dinner.
But she wasn't buying it for several reasons. First, she had
received a jury summons by mail a few months earlier and was excused
due to medical reasons. Also, she figured, if she was going to
be arrested, why would she get advance warning? Why wouldn't
the police just show up at her door?
She then asked the caller for a fax number so
she could send her proof of having been excused. The caller
gave what turned out to a disconnected number.
Senior citizens are especially vulnerable to
these types of scams. According to the FBI, this stems from
being raised in an era of more trust and civility. Another
factor is that seniors are sometimes concerned that relatives may
think that they can't manage their own affairs and try to handle
situations without consulting others for help.
Another variation of the scam involves simply
asking potential victims for their birth date and Social Security
number. The scammer explains that this is so a jury summons
can be sent out in the first place. Don't fall for that
approach. Remember: law enforcement officials stress that this
type of business is conducted by mail. Should you receive a
Jury Duty Scam call, notify your courthouse or state attorney
general's office... after, of course, hanging up on the caller.
Source: The National Notary Association,
November 2006
