The Alaska Attorney General’s office has issued a warning to beware of a telephone scam effort seeking Social Security numbers and/or money from residents of Alaska.
The scammers call on a number that identifies as being from the Social Security Administration saying that the Social Security number of the person they have reached has been suspended because of suspicious activity or because it has been involved in a crime.
The caller may ask the person answering the phone to confirm their Social security number to reactivate it. The scammer may also say that the bank account of the individual answering the phone is about to be seized and information is needed to safeguard the money in that account.
Alaska Attorney General Kevin Clarkson said Alaskans need to know that their Social Security number is not about to be suspended, nor are their bank accounts about to be seized. The Social Security Administration will never call to threaten benefits or tell individuals to wire money, send cash or put money on gift cards, Clarkson said.
Clarkson advised anyone receiving such calls to hang up and call 1-800-772-1213 to speak to the real SSA. Above all, he said, never give out any part of your Society Security number, bank account number or credit card number to an unknown caller.
