Scammers now using “911” to scare victims

A man with a foreign accent calls and says he is from somewhere official within the U.S. government and tells you there is a warrant for you arrest and you need to give him your information: many Mid-Missourians and people across the country have been receiving voicemails like this from scammers trying to steal identies.

And now they’re taking it up a notch — they’re using a third party app to make it seem like 911 is calling the victim.

Tony Thessler said he was surprised when 911 called him Wednesday.

“I was very perterbed because 911 doesn’t call you. Actually, that’s why I called back because my very first instinct was, ‘OK, I might want to find out what’s going on,'” Thessler said.

But when he called back, he recognized the voice and script from a year before, when a man called him and said he was from the IRS calling about tax fraud.

“It was the same voice, calling and trying to get my name and social security number,” he said.

He didn’t fall for it, but he said he is still worried because when he called the missed call back, it went straight to the real 911.

“Theyre using 911 and when you call it back it automatically rings up 911 and then I could get in trouble for calling that for no reason,” Thessler explained.

The Attorney General’s office said this is the first case they’ve heard of where the scammers use 911, but said it is the same concept as the IRS scam.

Remember, neither the IRS or 911 will ever call you.