Utility company scam question

Factual Questions
1

My uncle got a scam call from a scam farm pretending to be the utility company. He wasn’t fooled, but he said they were pretty good – right number, right hold music, Stay on the line for a survey after the call, and so on. They were threatening to shut off his power or his gas or something, and he did a good job acting like the panicky old man and kept them on the phone for about a half hour.

Not that he would ever have been fooled, but the real giveaway is that they were going to stay on the phone with him while he went to a 7-11 and paid (probably with Western Union or something?)

During the call, they told him that his last balance of $x amount hadn’t been paid and that’s why they were going to shut him off. They had the right number. How did they get his previous balance?

2

Does he have an online account with his power company? Or maybe his email is compromised.
Even a paper bill could have been stolen from his trash and sold to scammers.

3

Some of these people are really good at social engineering; it’s possible he said or confirmed the amount owed.

4

I wasn’t on the call with him, but he said that they gave him the number and then he looked it up and it was right. He’s a pretty smart, on the ball guy.

5

Hmmm…this is very troubling. Often times people will knock on doors, say they are with the utility, and demand cash to keep the gas/power on, but I haven’t heard of phone scams this sophisticated. What part of the country is your uncle in?

6

We’re in NJ. It would be funny if it were a legitimate call and his power got turned off!

7

The need to pay at 7-11 puts the kibosh on that.

8

Would having to pay at Wawa be more convincing?

9

The other dead giveaway is the demand that payment be made immediately or power would be cut off. No utility would work like that.

10

Anyway, he does auto payments from an account, so no statements or anything. I wonder if there’s an insider at the power company or something.

11

Is the power company local(city/county) or state wide?
If it’s local, an insider selling info would become apparent with the number of complaints.

12

Yeah, there may be a leak of account data or something. It could be from hackers getting into the system or from a 3rd party firm the utility contracts with. Since the amount was accurate, it would be worthwhile to notify the utility company about the scam. Most scams are just calling up random people, but this one appears to be based on valid information. The more customers that tell the utility about it, the more likely they are to take it seriously and look into how the scammers are getting the info.

13

Yeah, these are good points. Anyway, I guess the FQ answer is “not sure”. Thanks for thinking about it, and props to my uncle for taking the time to distract some pretty good scammers for 20-30 minutes.

14

Most utility companies will mail a statement first with a disconnection warning and try to keep service active.

I just checked on current scams, and found this statement: “Be aware that scammers often use Caller ID spoofing software to misrepresent the source of a phone call, or provide you with a fake “verification” phone number. These call-back numbers may even include exact replicas of company greetings and telephone hold messaging.”

15

Absolutely correct.

Here’s a link from my local gas company, with some info about utility scams:
Utility Scams – Stop Utility Fraud | CenterPoint Energy
Our agents will NEVER ask for payment via:

  • ​Cash
  • Money wire transfers
  • Prepaid debit cards (Green Dot cards)
  • Gift cards (Amazon, etc.)
  • PayPal, Venmo, Square Pay or Apple Pay

​We will NOT disconnect your services without first:

  • ​​Mailing you a bill, noting your account is now overdue.
  • If the balance remains unpaid, we will mail you a DISCONNECTION NOTICE, stating the approximate disconnection date and time. ​

What to Do if You’re Scammed by Utility Fraud:

  1. ​Hang up the phone or close the door (to end communication). If suspected scammers are currently at your home and your safety feels threatened, call 911.

  2. Call local law enforcement (if you haven’t already) to report the fraud.

  3. Call your utility provider using the phone number on your utility bill to and report the suspected scam (Contact CenterPoint Energy).

  4. Call your bank or financial institutions to report the incident and minimize damage.

  5. Report the incident to the Better Business Bureau (BBB).

  6. ​​​​You may also report utility scams to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

  7. For internet scams, also file a complaint with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) at the Internet Crime Complaint Center​.

  8. ​​Share info about utility scam attempts with neighbors, friends and family members. Social media is especially effective to quickly spread the word and prevent scammer success.

I agree your uncle should call his local utility and report this scam.