— by Lin McNulty —
The latest scam artists are targeting Washington state residents with threats of arrest due to missed jury duty.
Such a call in which the victim is caught off-guard, obviously unaware there had been a jury duty summons in the first place, can be frightening; “I missed jury duty?” The caller will reassure the victim that the problem can be resolved simply by paying the fine — over the phone.
Washington Courts issued the following guidelines about the ongoing jury scams occurring through the state:
- Law enforcement or court officials will never solicit any kind of payment over the phone or via email.
- Law enforcement or court officers will never ask you to provide your social security or credit card number over the phone or by email.
The bottom line? Do not EVER give out personal information; do not EVER give out credit card information to someone you don’t know over the phone or by email.
The IRS does not ask for money by telephone or email. Washington courts do not ask for money by telephone or email.
The guidelines ask that victims notify their local law enforcement agency if such a call is received. Sheriff Krebs indicates that these cases are difficult to investigate; the best defense is to NEVER give the information to an unknown caller. He also adds that is especially true if the caller is asking for money via Western Union.
Thanks, Lin, for the information. I just had my jury duty cancelled by a phone call from the “courts”. Had emailed a question in and their answer back was blocked so a nice gentleman actually called me to let me know the answer to the question and since he called, he let me know my service was not needed! Anything over the phone or in an email nowadays is suspect. Use your head and JUST SAY NO!