Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
DAVENPORT—It can be an easy trick to fall victim to: A call comes from an unrecognized number. Perhaps this caller is informing someone that they owe money to the bank, or that their child has been arrested and needs bail money over the phone. However, almost always, these calls are not legitimate, and people that give money to these scammers are being duped.
But when one has a landline without caller identification, or can’t tell whether a request for money is legitimate or fake, how can they figure out some telltale signs of a scammer?
Local law enforcement, which sees scam calls come in frequently, offered some advice.
“Unless you’ve reached out to somebody, never do any instructions they (the caller) tells you to do,” Lincoln County Sheriff Wade Magers said. “A lot of times, they’ll ask for your tax information, or ask you to go to Walmart and load a Visa card with your money and give it to them.”
If one receives a request for money to be paid over the phone, there’s a good chance that is a scammer.
“Immediately recognize if you haven’t dealt with (the caller) or have done business with who they’re claiming to be,” Magers said. “Never give money over the phone. A reputable business won’t go that way.”
“Equitable businesses will never ask for your social security number or checking account number over the phone,” Reardan police chief Andy Manke added. “That’s an immediate tip-off you’re about to get scammed.”
If one isn’t sure whether an unknown caller or not, Magers recommends taking a step back to consider the situation.
“Call the local business (the caller claims to be) and confirm whether you owe them money or not,” he said. “But don’t use the number that the caller used…look up their number. And don’t hesitate to call the sheriff’s office if you’re not sure.”
Manke also recommends taking time to think through a potential scam situation and asking advice from others if one isn’t sure.
“Nothing is so important that you have to make a decision right away,” he said. “Ask your neighbor, a family member or law enforcement to review the product or caller. Get another set of eyes on it.”
Sometimes, scammers will pose as callers from charities or nonprofits and ask for donations to a supposed good cause. Magers recommends ignoring these calls and donating to local organizations if one wants to be charitable.
“If you want to donate money, do it locally,” he said. “Donate to the Lions Club, schools or to local churches.”
Magers said oftentimes, people who get scammed are embarrassed they were duped, and don’t tell friends or family members that they lost money. Unfortunately, once money is lost, it’s almost impossible to solve, so it makes the importance of not giving money to unknown sources even greater, he said.
“I’ve never seen a local case get solved and money get returned,” he noted.
If a call comes from an unrecognized number, it may be prudent to let the call go to voicemail.
“If it’s a legitimate, important call, they’ll leave a voicemail,” Manke said. “Scam callers don’t leave messages.”
It’s also possible, and fairly common, to get scammed online. Magers recommends buying and installing antivirus software from a reputable company and never letting anyone scan your computer, whether that request pops up on a browser or through email.
“Never let anyone scan your computer,” he said.
Drew Lawson is the editor of the Davenport Times. He is a graduate of Eastern Washington University.
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