FBI Atlanta
Public Affairs Specialist Jenna Sellitto
(770) 216-3162
April 4, 2018

FBI Warns the Public About Increase in Reports of Jury Duty Scams

Once again, the FBI Atlanta Division and its Savannah Resident Agency are warning the public to be alert for a phone scam involving callers posing as law enforcement or judicial officials and telling targeted individuals they failed to report for jury duty and are required to pay a fine or fees.

The scam now appears more legitimate because it involves the “spoofing” of names and telephone numbers of legitimate law enforcement and judicial officials. Spoofing occurs when a caller deliberately falsifies the information transmitted to your caller ID to disguise their identity.

The FBI has received numerous complaints about the scam from people in and around the Savannah, Georgia area. In those cases, the caller tells the targeted victim that the fine/fee can be paid by using Green Dot Money Pak cards.

Green Dot cards are available at retail stores and can be loaded with up to $500. Victims of the scam are told to load the card with a specific amount of cash and then transfer the cards serial number to the scammer who drains the card.

The scam has been around for several years and has different variations, but has re-emerged with the “spoofed” telephone numbers that make it look like the call is coming from legitimate law enforcement agencies.

The FBI wants to assure the public that legitimate law enforcement/judicial officers DO NOT call private citizens asking for money. Citizens should NEVER give up personal information to callers they don’t know.

People who feel they have been targeted by a jury duty scam or similar scam can file a complaint through the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center at www.IC3.gov.