Residents warned not to give out financial information over phone
Published 4:36 pm Wednesday, October 30, 2002
By By Paul Keane
Publisher
Residents in Atmore are being warned to be wary of anyone calling and asking for sensative financial information.
The Atmore Police Department received a complaint this week that someone had contacted a resident asking some specific financial questions. No information was given to the suspect.
"Basically, a gentleman posed as a bank official and called a person in the area and asked if they had received their checks yet," said Chuck Brooks, an investigator with the Police Department. "The person then attempted to get account numbers from this person but was unsuccessful."
Brooks said some people will try this ploy to obtain access to accounts of other people.
"Basically, you should conduct business one on one," Brooks said. "I would discourage people from giving out credit card or checking account information to anyone over the phone. It is wise to do business of that nature one on one and face to face."
Anyone being solicited for that type of information can call Brooks at 368-9141 to file a complaint or simply to alert authorities.