VALDOSTA, GA – The Valdosta Police Department would like to remind citizens about the continued existence of telephone scams. The telephone calls come from various areas with constantly changing telephone numbers, so blocking a particular number will not eliminate these types of calls. These calls may be made to cellular telephones or landlines.

Sometimes calls are received from persons identifying themselves as being with a particular company that the victim has services with, such as the power company, telephone company, etc. The caller then asks for a credit card number, bank account information, or a money transfer, so that a payment can be made to the account. If you need to make a payment for a service by telephone, call the company yourself directly. Do not give your credit card number, bank account number, social security number, or any other personal information to anyone that you are not sure of their identity and legitimate purpose for asking for such information.

Also do not engage in conversation with anyone pitching free gifts, lottery winnings, or anything that sounds too good to be true. Hang up the telephone immediately or do not answer the telephone if you do not recognize the number. Having an answering machine seems to be a good deterrent as many times the scammers hang up if they encounter an answering machine.

These scams seem to prey more on the elderly. If you have an elderly family member, talk to them and warn them about these types of scams.

Source: Valdosta Police Department Press Release