Brewer Police Warn of Latest Scam Targeting Elderly

The Brewer Police Department posted to Facebook on Monday warning residents of a new scam related to a popular sweepstakes contest.

The scam is based on the popular Publisher's Clearing House contest. In the scam, people claiming to be a part of the Prize Patrol of the popular Publisher's Clearing House contest are contacting the elderly for a bank check worth $8,500 to go towards taxes.

There are a couple of things that make this illegitimate to the process of a legitimate organization like Publisher's Clearing House including that a real organization would not ask for cash. Another warning sign is scammers calling many times a day.

Get our free mobile app

If you or a family member is being pestered by scammers or sends money to a scammer, contact the FTC and file a complaint.

You can file your complaint online at the Federal Trade Commission government website. To submit your complaint you will need to provide an account of what happened which could be the scam, the company that contacted you, or the unwanted call that you received. From there you will learn how to protect yourself and your report will be shared with the Federal Trade Commission's law enforcement partners and partnering organizations.

Not sure if it was fraud or scam? Doesn't matter. If you feel there's a problem with how a business conducts itself, you can file a complaint. No matter if you think you got duped in a scam or if you received an unwanted phone call, it's appropriate to file a claim with the Federal Trade Commission.

If you want to take a look at more information about filing a claim or more scams that are out there right, check out the FTC.gov website and also check out Maine.gov for the different kinds of scams that are out there.