Identity Theft: Jury Duty Scam

A new and insidious scam is going around: the jury duty scam. In this scam, someone calls up claiming to be a court representative. He or she tells you that a warrant has been issued for your arrest due to failure to show up for jury duty. Immediately, you become alarmed. You insist you never received a summons. The person the helpfully offers to take your name and Social Security number to verify. If you refuse, you are pressured into "clearing this up quickly." Some even ask for a credit card number as "further verification."

Do not fall for this scam. Most jury duty-related correspondence is done in writing through snail mail. If you are truly concerned about this when the call comes in, tell the caller that you will come immediately to the courthouse to clear things up. Then you can go in to ask questions. If the caller is insistent that it's easier to "just do it over the phone," you know there is a problem. Real government workers will have no problem with you just coming down to the courthouse.

Protect your financial wellbeing and your identity by being very reluctant to give out personal information over the phone to people who call you.