Monday, April 5, 1999

Caddo Parish Sheriff Don Hathaway today warned citizens of a credit card scam currently being used by out-of-area con artists with the Y2K bug as a "hook."

The Sheriff said his White Collar Crime Unit has received a number of calls about the scam. "The con artists are calling primarily in the evenings," he explained, "claiming to represent the credit card company. The caller asks the citizen for the credit card number to verify that the card number is ‘Y2K’ compatible."

Sheriff Hathaway noted that with all the current discussion about potential problems associated with the beginning of the year 2000, "this scam makes unsuspecting citizens especially vulnerable and more likely to give the con artist their credit card number."

The Sheriff reminded citizens to never give a credit card number or other personal identification information to anyone by telephone unless the citizen initiates the call to a reputable company. "It is a generally accepted practice," Sheriff Hathaway continued, "that reputable companies will never place a call and ask for a credit card number or other personal identification."

The Sheriff urged citizens receiving such calls to try to get as much information as possible about the caller, refuse to give any personal information and report the call to the Sheriff’s Office at 318-675-2170 or another local law enforcement agency. The Sheriff’s White Collar Crime Unit is currently following up on a number of reports received in the past several weeks.