03/24/2026
With advancing technology often comes more complex scams. These scams often come with text messages or phone calls that may feel threatening, request payments or both. Ways to identify scams can be found below:
- Government Agencies such as the Registry of Motor Vehicles (RMV), the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and Courthouses of any kind will NEVER attempt to contact you via text messages, phone, or email
- Scams often come from numbers outside of the US and have an have different phone country codes (ex: +63 (999)-999-9999) instead of the US country code of +1
- Scams also often come from unknown emails addresses that are inconsistent with the agency being impersonated
- Scams often include several grammatical errors within these electronic messages
- Scams often request payments through uncommon means such as gift cards, cryptocurrency, or mobile cash transfer applications
If you suspect that you be be the subject of a scam it is important to do the following:
- Immediately contact your local police department with any question, concerns, or reports of a scam
- Never click any links attached to any message
- Never provide any personal information (ex: Social Security Numbers, credit card information, bank account numbers, names, maiden names, or date of births, etc.
- Never provide any monetary payments of any kind
Identity theft occurs when someone steals your personal information, such as your Social Security number or bank account information, to commit fraud or other crimes. Identity theft can take many forms and can leave your finances in disarray.
