WASHINGTON (NewsNation) — Police across the U.S. are warning the public about an old scam with a new twist: Callers threatening you with fines or arrest over jury duty.
The renewed con adds to the billions of dollars lost in the U.S. to internet criminals over the past several years.
The biggest red flag is police and court officials will not call you about jury service, nor will they threaten you via phone and threaten to put you in jail if you don’t pay them.
Don’t fall for it, police say.
The FBI in 2023 received more than 880,000 complaints of internet-based financial crimes, totaling more than $12.6 billion in losses, an increase from 2022.
Police say if you receive a similar call, hang up and report it.
One of the easiest things you can do to avoid being duped or defrauded by a phone scam: Don’t even pick up the phone.
Cell carriers have rolled out some new tools to help warn people against scammers — you may see a warning like “scam likely” on your phone screen when it rings — but they aren’t perfect. There are a few other things you can look for to tip you off that an incoming call probably isn’t worth your time.
The first major red flag is if the call is coming from an area code that hasn’t been allocated, explained Alex Quilici, CEO of YouMail, a phone screening and blocking service.
“Those area codes are 100% guaranteed to be a scammer. Like area code 300. There’s not really a 300, so any calls coming from there are going to be a scam,” Quilici said.
