Putnam County Sheriff: Scammers Steal While Saying They Can Get Your Power Back
Hudson Valley residents need to be on the lookout for an ongoing scam that targets people who lost power, or ones who want to avoid a future power outage.
Hundreds of thousands of Hudson Valley residents lost power this past week, if that wasn’t bad enough, now there is a power outage scam to look out for.
“As with other power outages, there is always a concern about people becoming victims to a burglary or larceny by those posing as NYSEG employees,” Putnam County Sheriff Robert Langley Jr., and District Attorney Robert Tendy said in a joint press release.
Langley and Tendy released the following reminders to ensure you don’t become a victim to scams that happen involving power outages:
1. NYSEG employees will never come to your house, knock on your door, and ask you if they can check your inside wiring, or your meter or any other safety issue in your house. NYSEG employees tend to road issues and exterior issues. They will not be asking to enter your home.
2. If you have a generator, NYSEG employees will not come to your house and ask for access in order to “check on the flow of electricity” for safety purposes.
3. Beware of “home oil company” representatives or employees who want to enter your home to “make sure you are safe.” If you did not call them do NOT let them enter your home. Always ask for identification.
4. If you see someone wandering around your property pretending to look at wires or lights or cable wires, chances are they are not there from NYSEG. They are more likely looking for an access point to your home, or looking to see if they can grab something and run. NYSEG employees come with a crew and are in marked vehicles, etc.
5. NYSEG employees who are driving around checking wires and poles are always in marked vehicles.
6. NYSEG will not call you and ask you to verify personal information so that they can get your electricity turned on. If anyone calls you in this regard, do not give them account information, address information, birthdate information, “security question” information, etc.
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