United States attorney Susan Lehr announced that the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Nebraska has become aware of an Impersonation Scam using Ms. Lehr’s name, image, and title to attempt to defraud victims via email. On Wednesday, their office received several calls from concerned citizens regarding emails they received claiming to be United States Attorney Lehr. It was quickly determined to be a scam and callers were directed to report to the FBI Tip Line at www.ic3.gov and FTC Fraud Line at https://reportfraud.ftc.gov/. No callers had suffered a financial loss related to the scam.
If you receive an email demanding payment to the US Attorney’s Office, you are encouraged to not open any attachments, or respond providing any personal information. Submit a report to the FBI Tip Line and FTC Fraud Line (linked above).
According to Mr. Lehr, “the only time the U.S. Attorney’s Office is involved in the collection of money is for restitution purposes in a criminal case after a judicial finding.”
Tips for finding additional information related to common scams are below.
How To Avoid a Government Impersonation Scam. Scammers pretend to be from government agencies like the FTC, Social Security Administration, and IRS — or say they’re calling about your Medicare benefits. They contact you and say that, if you don’t pay or give them your personal information, something bad will happen. Or maybe you’ll miss out on some government benefit. But it’s a scam. Learn the signs and avoid the scam.
Here are some other examples of government impersonation scams:
Scammers impersonate “the national consumer protection agency.” They might say they’re from the non-existent National Sweepstakes Bureau or another made-up agency. If you’re in doubt, check out the list of real federal agencies at usa.gov.
Scammers impersonate your local sheriff’s office or a court official. They might say there’s a warrant out for your arrest and that you’ll go to jail if you don’t pay immediately. Or that they’re from the local court and you need to pay a penalty for missing jury duty. This is most likely a scam. But if you’re worried, look up the real number for the government agency or office the caller mentioned. Then contact them directly to get the real story.
Scammers impersonate representatives of immigration authorities. They might say they’re calling from the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) or another agency, there’s a problem with an immigration application or petition, and you have to pay them to solve that issue. This is a scam. If you’re concerned, contact USCIS directly. Also read Avoid Immigration Scams and Get Real Help.
Source: https://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/how-avoid-government-impersonation-scam
