Two JEA customers have been victims of a scam that claims President Barack Obama is responsible for assistance in paying utility bills.
After reports of the scam from two customers Thursday, JEA began warning others of the nationwide utility bill scam in which customers are being told that Obama has approved special funding through the Federal Reserve Bank for utility bill assistance. The scam claims that Obama is providing credits or applying payments to customers’ utility bills.
There is no such funding.
Scammers are calling or visiting JEA customers and also soliciting them online, asking for personal information, such as Social Security numbers.
The scammers then provide victims with a fraudulent bank routing number with which to pay their bills.
The payments are then routed to the scammers, not to JEA.
“JEA will never call a customer, unsolicited, and ask for banking and personal information. It is important that you call your financial institution should you inadvertently give your account number or bank routing number,” said Gerri Boyce, JEA media relations coordinator.
“Remember, if it sounds too good to be true, it usually is,” she said.
The scams also have been reported in several other states, including Texas, Ohio, Utah and Iowa.
JEA serves an estimated 420,000 electric, 305,000 water and 230,000 sewer customers in Northeast Florida.
It is the seventh-largest community-owned electric utility in the United States and one of the largest water and sewer utilities in the nation.
“Generally speaking, you don’t ever give out your Social Security number to anyone, especially if you have concerns about their legitimacy. It’s always a good practice when you suspect fraud to report it to law enforcement,” said Shannon Hartley, public information officer at the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office.
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