Madison County Sheriff’s Office warning against scam calls

MADISON COUNTY, Ala. (WHNT) — The Madison County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) is warning residents about scammers who may be pretending to be someone with the sheriff’s office.

MCSO said it has been receiving calls about a recent surge in scams targeting local residents. The sheriff’s office said the scammers are contacting people saying that they have outstanding warrants and demanding that the person pay a fine.

Authorities said the scam calls may even display an official-looking phone number on the caller ID, and may even appear to be using an MCSO number using a technique called caller ID spoofing.

To help protect the community, MCSO said residents should be aware it will never do the following:

• make telephone calls for donations,
• inform individuals about warrants over the phone,
• request money, gift cards or wire transfers to pay off warrants

The sheriff’s office urges residents to be vigilant and cautious of strangers calling for money to pay off outstanding warrants or fines. MCSO said this is not their normal procedure.

Authorities said if you receive a suspicious call, you should not give any personal or financial information. MCSO said the best thing to do is hang up the phone and contact them directly

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WHNT.com.