Lisa Hale at Civic Media, 92.7 WMDX, writes about a scam targeting home and business-owners seeking building permits.
These scammers are sending real-looking invoices and emails to permit applicants. The data are likely harvested from online city, county, or state board records and meeting minutes, openly available on the internet.
The City of Green Bay, WI issued a press release explaining how to detect and report fraud. Signs of a fraudulent emails and invoices include a heightened sense of urgency, insistence on performing a wire transfer as opposed to an in-person payment, and threats of jail time if demands are not met.
One tip mentions checking the end of website and email addresses to see if they end in .gov. Unfortunately, many municipalities use other endings like .com, .org, & .net, and therefore it cannot be a hard and fast rule. It is always best to call, or better yet go in person, to your city office.
Below are some examples of images that have been sent out. Scammers are quick to adapt once a market is saturated and news reports begin circulating, often changing email verbiage and images slightly to try to avoid detection. These are only representative of the emails and invoices that one may encounter ‘in the wild’.
Remember, when in doubt, call or go in person to the proper city office. They are your best resource, and that 10 minute trip can save you thousands of dollars.
Stay safe, folks.
Example Scam Images
