4.18.2007

Jury Duty Scam...PLEASE BE CAREFUL

You all know I really don't like sending and receiving SPAM letters...but I think this one's legitimate. If not...then please bear in mind the actual lesson it contains...just don't give information out to anyone that contacts you...

Have someone send or resend you something in writing. If it's official, they'll do it.

Be careful!



---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: EDo <eal.net>
Date: Apr 17, 2007 9:57 PM
Subject: FW: JURY DUTY SCAM (REAL; NOT A HOAX)
To: Erin Downs < erindowns@sbcglobal.net>

I checked this out on my own at snopes.com, and it is a real and active
scheme. I'm sure all of you know never to give out your social, but it's a
good reminder. Just an fyi...

-----Original Message-----

This has been verified by the FBI (Their link is also included below).
Please pass this on to everyone in your email address book. It is spreading
fast so be prepared should you get this call. Most of us take summons for
jury duty seriously, but enough people skip out on their civic duty, that a
new and omi nous kind of scam has surfaced. The caller claims to be a jury
coordinator. If you protest that you never received a summons for jury duty,
the scammer asks you for your Social Security number and date of birth so he
or she can verify the information and cancel the arrest warrant. Give out
any of this information and bingo; your identity just got stolen. The scam
has been reported so far in 11 states, including Oklahoma, Illinois, and
Colorado. This (scam) is particularly insidious because they use
intimidation over the phone to try to bully people into giving information
by pretending they're wit h the court system. The FBI and the federal court
system have issued nationwide alerts on their web sites, warning consumers
about the fraud.

Check it out here: http://www.snopes.com/crime/fraud/juryduty.asp
http://www.fbi.gov/pressrel/pressrel

How to Protect yourself -

Court workers WILL NOT CALL YOU to report you have missed jury duty or to
assemble juries or to prescreen jurors. If anyone calls with this premise it
is not legitimate.

NEVER GIVE OUT your Social Security Number, Credit Card Number or Address
over the phone if you did not initiate the call. If a caller insists on
"verifying" this information with you HAVE THEM READ IT TO YOU, never give
it to them to verify against their records.

Examine your credit card statements every month and look for unknown or
unauthorized charges.