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San Diego, CA - A new scam is
underway, nationwide, to trick people into giving out
their personal information. It is known among military and
civilian law enforcement as the “Jury Duty Scam” which is
being utilized by credit and identity thieves to deceive
victims into revealing their personal information.
According to a Criminal Information Bulletin from the 31st
Military Police Detachment at Fort Campbell, KY., here is
how the scam works:
1) The scammer calls a residence or office phone number of
the victim and identifies themselves as an officer or
employee of the local court or jurisdiction. The thief
tells the victim that he or she has failed to report for
jury duty and that a bench warrant for their arrest was
issued against them.
2) The victim’s reaction is one of shock and surprise and
it places the victim at an immediate disadvantage, and
much more susceptible to the scam. The potential victim
will rightly deny knowledge of any such claim; that no
such Jury Duty notice was ever received.
3) The scammer then shifts into “high gear” and reassures
the victim of the possibility this is all “just a
misunderstanding“ or “some sort of clerical error” that
can be straightened out on the phone. All the victim needs
to do is “verify” some of their information by answering a
few simple questions.
Any sort of reluctance on the victim’s part and the
scammer threatens that failure to provide this information
will result in the immediate execution of the arrest
warrant.
The scammer obtains the names, Social Security Numbers,
dates of birth and will also solicit credit card or bank
account numbers claiming these will be used by their
credit bureau to “verify” the victim’s identity.
Family members who receive these calls are especially
vulnerable to coercion. Threats against the victim’s
career, should he or she be arrested and now have a
criminal record, are frightening and persuasive.
4) Individual consumers, whether employed or not, and
their adult family members must be made aware of this
threat to their personal information, credit and
identities. Legitimate court employees would NEVER call to
solicit personal information and would send any official
notifications by standard mail delivery.
Any person receiving such calls should record the
scammer’s phone number (if called ID is available) and
Immediately report the contact to local law enforcement
authorities or the military police.
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About the ICFE:
About the
ICFE:
The Institute of Consumer Financial Education (ICFE), founded in 1982 by the
late Loren Dunton (creator of the “certified financial planner” (CFP)
designation) and it is dedicated to helping consumers of all ages to improve
their spending, increase savings and use credit more wisely. The ICFE trains and
certifies Personal Finance Instructors for its own curriculum. It also trains
and certifies Credit Report Reviewers and Identity Theft Prevention Specialists.
The ICFE is an award winning, nonprofit, consumer education organization that
has helped millions of people through its education programs and resources. It
publishes the Do-It-Yourself Credit File correction Guide, now in its 16th
printing and has distributed over one million “Credit/Debit Card Warning Labels”
and “Credit/Debit Card Sleeves” world wide.
The ICFE became an official partner with the Department of Defense/Financial
Readiness Campaign in June of 2004.
The ICFE is also a partner in the national Jump$tart Coalition for Financial
Literacy and the California Jump$tart chapter. The ICFE staff is also active
with San Diego Saves, an offshoot of America Saves, and the California Student
Debt Resource Awareness Project (CASDRAP) (studentdebthelp.org).
The ICFE’s on-line help for consumers who spend too much was featured in PARADE
Magazine in the Intelligence Report section. The money helps and tips are from
“The Money Instruction Book,” a course in personal finance, positioned to become
among the premier programs in the new bankruptcy and debtor education
initiatives.
The ICFE Web site at:
http://www.icfe.info helps consumers with mending spending, learning about
the proper use of credit, budget and expense guidelines, how to set up and
implement a spending-plan and also how to access financial education courses and
videos and how to teach children about money. Other ICFE services include a free
eNewsletter, and an online resource center of financial education learning
tools, including videos, books, software and personal finance courses.
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