2. Jury Duty Scam
One of the latest identity theft scams is about missed jury duty.
Someone claiming to be a worker at the court calls to say that you failed to show up for jury duty and that they’re issuing a warrant for your arrest.
When you claim that you never received any notification for jury duty, they ask you for personal information for “verification” purposes: name, Social Security number, address, phone number, etc.
Sometimes they even ask for credit card numbers. But even without a credit card number, the scammers have everything they need to steal your identity.
This scam has been reported in Michigan, Ohio, Arizona, Texas, Illinois, Pennsylvania, Minnesota, Oregon, and Washington. It works because people are caught off guard and are unnerved by the thought that they’re about to be arrested. Because of that, they volunteer information that they would probably never give out otherwise.
Protecting yourself is as easy as remembering that most communication from the court will come through the mail. If a court worker does call, they’ll never ask for your personal information over the phone. And if you simply won’t have any peace of mind until you’re certain you won’t be arrested, hang up and call the court yourself with a number you look up.