Animal shelters in Maryland issued a warning to pet owners about an ongoing scam involving phone calls targeting those who have missing animals.
The Baltimore Animal Rescue and Care Shelter (BARCS) and the Maryland SPCA shared in a press release that scammers are spoofing the shelters’ official phone numbers and contacting individuals who shared online that their pets are missing.
The scammers pose as shelter employees, falsely claiming the pets have been found and are in critical condition. They urge these desperate pet owners to pay for medical procedures and demand payment through CashApp, Venmo, PayPal or other third-party apps.
The animal shelters said in the press release that they do have official Venmo and PayPal accounts used for donations, however, neither organization will call people to request emergency payments. If you receive a call asking for money, red flags should go up.
The shelters first noticed these scam calls appearing last fall. It seemed to taper off, only to return recently, the press release stated.
“About two weeks ago, a member of the community reached out to share that they had been targeted for the scam,” Noelle Patterson, director of philanthropy and communications at BARCS, told Newsweek via email. “It had been a while since we heard of any more happening, so we were unsure if it was going to continue to be an issue again. But then the following week, several others reached out to share that they had experienced the same thing, so we knew that we needed to re-share this with the community so that pet owners were aware.”
Patterson estimates nearly a dozen scams have been reported directly to them, but they assume there are others who have not shared their experience.
She stated that the organizations have heard these scams are happening nationally, not just for lost pets. People might receive scam calls claiming someone they know has been in a terrible car accident, and once again, the scammers demand money for the person’s care.
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The press release stated that despite the increased awareness of the scam calls, there is “no real fix” currently. Instead, those who receive these calls are urged to file reports with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) or the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), as well as to the shelters the scammers are posing as. The reports will help track the incidents and build a case against the scammers.
The FTC’s website states that if someone calls out of the blue and asks for personal information, wire money or pay with a gift card, it is a scam.
Newsweek has reached out to the FTC via email for additional information.
Ethan Salem, director of marketing and communications at the Maryland SPCA, stated in the press release: “The best defense we have right now is our voice. We’re urging people to stay vigilant, watch out for suspicious calls, and never send payment or give out personal information over the phone.”