SCAM ALERT-The Coffey County Sheriff's Office has received multiple reports of a phone scam affecting residents of Coffey County.  In the scam call, the individual impersonates Coffey County Sheriff's Office personnel and states that they are calling about an arrest warrant and will ask that you to pay a sum of money or report to the Sheriff's Office to be arrested.  Please be aware of this scam and understand that the Coffey County Sheriff's Office will not call in regard to an arrest warrant and will not ever ask for or accept payments over the phone.   

In any situation, it is important to be able to identify potential phone scams and know what to do.  The Federal Trade Commission provides this advice for recognizing and protecting yourself from phone scams.  

1. If you have to pay to get a prize- there is no prize.  
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1. You won't be arrested.  Real law enforcement agencies won't call to threaten you. 
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1. Don't get pressured into making a decision on the spot.  Real businesses will allow you to take time to think about how you would like to proceed especially if it involves money.  
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1.  Only scammers demand you pay certain ways, and usually it is in a way that is hard to get your money back. (gift cards, wire transfer, cryptocurrency) 
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1. Government agencies won't call to confirm your personal, identifiable information.   
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There are several ways that scammers try to convince you that they are legitimate, and they can be very persistent and persuasive.  Listed below are a few ways that a caller may try to scam you.   

1. Impersonator Scams- callers pretend to be a person or organization that you trust (such as pretending to be a person employed by the Sheriff's Office.) They may even provide a fake phone number to make the call even more convincing. 
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1. Debt Relief and Credit Repair Scams- callers say that they can repair your credit or get you lower interest rates on a debt if you pay them a fee.  You lose your money and ruin your credit if you pay the fee.  
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1. Charity Scams- callers pose as real charities requesting donations.  It's always best to hang up and research the charity before you take any action.  
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Please do your due diligence to protect yourself and your family members from phone scams.  Help us spread the word so that no one you know becomes a victim.   

1. The best way to protect yourself is to simply not answer calls from phone numbers that you don't recognize.  If it is a legitimate call, they will make multiple attempts to contact you, find an alternative way to contact you, and/or leave a message.  
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1. Hang up.  As soon as you recognize a scam, or aren't comfortable with a phone conversation, just hang up.  
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1. Block unwanted calls.  Contact your phone service provider or see what apps are available for your phone to block callers.
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1. Don't trust your caller ID.  Scammers can spoof phone numbers to make them appear to come from a trusted source.   
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If you have already fallen victim to a phone scam by sending money, there are some actions you can take in an attempt to recover your funds.  

1.  Report any transaction (be it via credit card, bank transfer, crypto currency, wire transfer, payment app, gift card, etc.) as unauthorized or fraudulent to your bank or the company your account is with to conduct the transaction, immediately.   
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1. If you sent cash by U.S. mail, contact the U.S. Postal Inspection Service at 877-876-2455 and ask them to intercept the package. 
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More information about recognizing and protecting yourself from phone scams is available on the Federal Trade Commission's website at https://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/phone-scams#howtorecognize