For Hub City Times

NEILLSVILLE — The Clark County Sheriff’s Office has received several reports from citizens regarding telephone and internet scams throughout the county within the last several months. Some of these con artists sound very professional and have well thought-out scams that defraud hundreds of people daily.

Some of the telephone scams that have been reported to the Clark County Sheriff’s Office include:

—Vehicle warranty calls where a telemarketer asks if you still own a specific vehicle and then tries to sell a vehicle warranty.

—A person calls and tells you that they are part of your energy cooperative; informs you that your business owes money and if the money is not paid over the phone immediately, your services will be disconnected; and then has you or your business purchase Green Dot MoneyPaks with a credit card. The con artists do research on your business.

—A caller indicates being with a law enforcement agency, that there is a warrant for your arrest, and you need to pay over the phone or you will go to jail. Note: The Clark County Sheriff’s Office will never call and ask for any type of payment over the phone. In fact it is against state statute to collect money anywhere other than a police department, sheriff’s office, or public building.

If a phone number is supplied to you, search for the number on the internet, and you may get information about it being a scam. If you think that it is a scam, hang up, and never give out credit card information over the telephone.

The sheriff’s office has also received several complaints from citizens of their loved ones being befriended on the internet and sending thousands of dollars to people they have not met for a promise of a relationship. In most of these scams, the money is being transferred via MoneyPak cards, iTunes cards, or fake Wells Fargo bank accounts.

These are actual scams that have been attempted in Clark County within the last several months. In one instance, a Clark County Sheriff’s Office detective made phone contact with a scammer. The scammer made it clear that fraud attempts will continue and seemed to take great pride in it.

In the event that you or anyone you know fall victim to any of these types of scams, you should record the following information:

—Victim’s name, address, telephone, and email.

—Financial transaction information such as account information, transaction date and amount, who received the money.

—Date and time of incident.

—Subject’s name, address, telephone, email, website, and IP address.

—Email headers.

—Any other relevant information you believe is necessary that may be relevant.

If you believe that you or someone you know has been scammed or has received these types of scams, contact your local law enforcement agency or the Clark County Sheriff’s Office at 800-743-2420. If you have been scammed over the internet, contact the Federal Bureau of Investigation Internet Crime Complaint Center at ic3.gov to file a report.