OCPD WARNING CITIZENS OF TELEPHONE SCAM

(June 24, 2014) – The Ocean City Police Department is warning citizens about a current telephone scam that has recently been reported in Ocean City. The scam involves unsolicited calls from individuals who claim to be a member of local law enforcement or a Federal agent notifying the citizen that they have unpaid parking or traffic citations. The caller will become very hostile and harass or threaten the citizen with jail time or fines in order to obtain personal data and debit/credit card information from them.

The scammers will also use a tactic known as “caller ID spoofing” which falsifies the telephone number and name that appears on the citizen’s caller ID. Other nearby jurisdictions have reported that the scammers have even used the name of actual police officers in order to appear legitimate.

The Ocean City Police Department reminds citizens to never provide debit or credit card information over the phone to unsolicited callers. Government agencies, including law enforcement, will not ask for your card number over the phone. Citizens who suspect that they have provided their bank card information to a scammer should contact their financial institution immediately.