The FBI has warned the public regarding a phone scam that spoofs or fraudulently displays the FBI’s telephone number on the victim’s caller ID.
Nebraska TV reports that the scammer impersonates a government official and uses intimidation tactics, such as the threat of arrest, to demand payment of money. Moreover, the FBI Omaha Field Office’s main number and the numbers of its Resident Agencies, or satellite offices, have been spoofed in this manner recently throughout Nebraska and Iowa.
This type of scam, defined by the FBI as government impersonation fraud, sees criminals impersonate government officials in an attempt to collect money. In some cases, the target may be told that there is a federal warrant for their arrest, which would be dismissed by the court in exchange for immediate payment to the caller.
Moreover, according to the Internet Crimes Complaint Center (IC3), over 12,000 people nationwide have reported being victims of government impersonation scams in 2019, with losses reaching around USD 112,000,000.
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