State troopers warn of scammers faking ISP phone number

Indiana State Police say a scammer is calling residents of southern Indiana, pretending to be an investigator with the state police and tried to trick victims into buying prepaid credit cards or gift cards.

According to reports from the Bloomington Post, the caller ID for the scammer purports to be from the Indiana State Police and appears to be coming from an 812 number. The scammer claims to be investigating a theft of the victim’s identity, and demands the proceeds from card purchases as a way to clear up the identity theft.

Troopers are reminding Hoosiers that the scammers are technically savvy and will play on your emotions and fears to get to your money.

Authorities say that you should ignore unsolicited or unknown callers, hang up if things don’t seem correct and never provide any information over the phone such as your identity, social security number, bank account or credit card numbers.

And experts say that any caller’s attempt to make you buy prepaid credit cards or gift cards is always a scam.