Atascadero police want people to be aware of scam calls that appear to be targeting people in the community.
Police say they’ve launched an investigation after several residents have reported receiving the calls from people falsely claiming to be from the Atascadero Police Department.
“These scammers use caller ID spoofing technology to make it appear that the calls are coming directly from the department. The callers claim to be investigating a fraud case and ask for personal identifying information,” the department stated in a press release, adding that the reports officers have received indicate many times the callers have a noticeable accent or appear to be calling from a call center or something similar.
Police urge anyone who receives a call that seems suspicious from someone claiming to be an officer to not share any personal information and hang up and contact Atascadero police at (805) 461-5051. The department can then verify the legitimacy of the call.
Paso Robles police issued a phone scam warning in October after scam calls were also reportedly targeting residents there.
