Clay Center, KS- KCLY Residents have reported that they have received phone calls from individuals claiming to be from Verizon and Evergy recently stating that their payment is late and they must pay immediately or face their services being shut off immediately.

Gina Penzig, a spokesperson for Evergy says the scammer claims to be a customer service representative and uses phony caller ID numbers to target consumers by masking and duplicating the phone number of a legit company like Evergy, Verizon, your bank, credit card companies, or even from the federal government.

These scammers can be very convincing, place you on hold, and pretend that they are transferring you to someone else.

Penzig says there are a few things that should send red flags up right away to know they aren’t who they say they are.

It’s always a good idea that if someone calls you with terms like those to hang up and report it to the attorney general’s office, the consumer protection agency, local law enforcement, and the company.

But the most important thing to remember is, never give personal information to someone you don’t know over the phone. These scammers are looking to collect your personal information like your bank account or other financial account numbers, social security number, date of birth, or mother’s maiden name.

If you receive a call that seems suspicious, but you are not sure, end that phone call and call the customer service phone number from your bill.  If you have the capability to check your bill online to see the status, it is suggested to do that also.

Penzig says that she has also heard of people being bold enough to go door-to-door and representing companies in a similar manner. She says, if anyone comes to your door and claims to be from Evergy or any other company, know that there are very few circumstances someone would come to your door for service, but you can always call the company and verify that they sent someone to your home and check for a company ID.

If you happen to become a victim to this crime, contact your local law enforcement office and report it and contact your financial institution immediately.

Janet Schnell covers state and local news for KFRM and KCLY. You can follow the KCLY or KFRM Facebook page for more stories.

KFRM covers news from across the state of Kansas, the Northern part of Oklahoma, and Southern part of Nebraska.

KCLY coverage area includes the nine counties of Clay, Cloud, Dickinson, Geary, Marshall, Ottawa, Riley, Republic, and Washington.

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