Officials warn of Ameren scam in Mexico

The Ameren Missouri scam is making its rounds again in Mexico, Missouri, according to the Mexico Public Safety Department.

The scammers will call, representing themselves as someone who works with Ameren and tell the victim they are behind on their bill. The scammer then will demand immediate payment and say an Ameren employee will come to their home or business to shut off their power if the payment is not made immediately. MPSD said the scammers tend to be persistent and wil not give up if they think the victim will believe them.

MPSD also said there is another, similar scam in which the scammer pretends to be a Microsoft employee in order to gain access to the victim’s computer and obtain personal information. In the Microsoft scam, a different caller will contact the victim wanting to transfer money through the victim’s bank account.

“They use the information they previously obtained to appear legitimate, and the scammer then takes money from the account,” MPSD said in a press release. “Generally, these scams originate outside of the country, and the numbers are ‘spoofed’ to appear they are from a local number or a legitimate business.”

MPSD said the best way to avoid becoming a victim of one of these scams is to “remember that legitimate businesses will not require payment in ways that are harder to track such as money cards.”

If you are concerned about your business with a particular company, the best practice is to call the company on the number you have and do not rely on the number in your caller ID.

“Remember that if it sounds too good to be true, it is,” MPSD said.