PHONE, E-MAIL AND IN-PERSON SCAMS NEVER-ENDING - Now Comes "Spoofing And "The Man Of Your Dreams"

(08/02/2014)
UPDATE 8/06/2014 - A Calhoun family was scammed for $5,400, a person claiming to be their grandson called by phone saying he was in trouble in Richmond, Virginia and needed immediate assistance.

The elderly Calhoun couple sent money-grams, likely to a WalMart, to lend assistance.

The false identity scam has used both the Internet and phone calling for scamming.

Police are investigating the recent Calhoun incident.

Never-Ending Scams (8/2/2014)

Calhoun residents are reporting getting "spoofing" phone calls.

Phone users once thought Caller ID would protect from unwanted calls.

Sorry.

"Spoofing" is getting a call from a person and phone number that you might know, generally from the same calling area.

At least two Calhoun residents reported getting such calls, but there are likely many, in their case from a 655 exchange, and then being solicited to purchase something.

"Spoofing" has been common with e-mail, getting e-mails from people you know, and inviting you to open a document.

Most citizens are in tune with how not to get scammed, by phone, e-mail or in-person, but not all, generally catching the elderly off-guard.

Regional residents have been getting calls saying something like, "We have discovered your computer is infected with a virus and will likely crash, and we can fix it for you." The caller, generally with a foreign accent, then tries to get personal information and collect money.

Anonymous calls, difficult to track, have recently been received locally.

A Russett woman said her phone rang at 1:30 a.m. and a man advised her, using her name, that he was the "man of your dreams." She is attempting to trace the unknown caller.

Here's a look at the most frequent scams experienced by local and regional residents:

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