New phone scam: Who is at risk?

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FAIRBANKS, Alaska - Scam artists will find any way possible to take money from unsuspecting people. Phone scams are not necessarily a new tactic, but the people behind them have been finding new ways to further their deception; making their victims more likely to believe the ruse. Sergeant Jess Carson with the Alaska State Troopers talked about the most recent scam going around.

"Currently we have received reports that people are calling individuals on the sex offender registry, calling up and demanding money from them or indicating that if they don't pay a fine or a fee, that

they will be arrested. This is not a practice of the Alaska State Troopers, we don't collect any money over the phone for anything. In fact law enforcement agencies across the nation, this is not a common practice for them." Sgt. Carson said.

He said because the information is public, it is likely that the scammers are cross referencing the information with online databases. Sergeant Carson cautioned anyone who receives a call like this to verify the information they are being given.

"The best thing that people can do to protect themselves from being a victim of any scam is to just ask questions and double check. If you are receiving a phone call asking for money, there has to be a website that backs up what they are saying, some kind of electronic billing process, an office or a building that you can go into, or a registered number that you can find such as the Alaska State Trooper number." Said Sgt. Carson.

He said a lot of the calls originate from overseas so

they can be harder to track, but still encouraged those targeted to file reports. Anyone who thinks they may have been targeted by these scams is urged to file a report with the State Troopers, or other local law enforcement agency.