Authorities warn of new scams being circulated via text

As the world of connections shifted from mailboxes to texts and emails, scam artists developed new tactics and tricks that are costing Burke County locals time and money.

Every few weeks, the Burke County Sheriff’s Office or the Morganton Department of Public Safety (MDPS) sends out a new warning concerning scam texts. The messages generally press receivers to send money to settle court and law enforcement matters, utility bills, and other financial issues while threatening strong consequences for ignoring them.

Just before Winter Storm Fern iced the roads and caused a stir, the MDPS issued a warning about the most recent scam cluttering inboxes, involving cryptocurrency machines located around Morganton.

Cryptocurrency is a virtual, decentralized form of money. Although the underlying blockchain technology allows traceability, criminals are exploiting the ability to change accounts and profiles quickly.

“While there are regulations and policies in place for these machines, websites, and money exchange platforms, people are constantly changing identities, identifiers, IP addresses, and other information we would normally use to locate and charge a suspect if all of those factors were local to our agency,” said MDPS Professional Standards Lt. Tayler Alexander.

The machines located in Morganton act as ATMs (automated teller machines), allowing users to deposit cash or swipe their debit card to purchase and sell digital currency. Unfortunately, if they place funds into an account provided by someone else, or if they send crypto to a specific user, the money quickly disappears.

“While the machines are local, the exchange platforms can be utilized to convert your money into cryptocurrency or send it to others outside of our area, even in other countries,” Alexander said. “So, the suspect(s) who are conducting scams this way may not be someone we could call in for an interview like we would for another type of crime if they resided here.”

Local authorities are being proactive, placing warning flyers around the city, especially at the crypto ATMs. Their warning comes with a solution: Call the MDPS at 828-437-1911 if receivers think they may be the target of a scam.

DUKE ENERGY WARNINGS

Around the same time, the Burke County Government shared a similar text scam warning from Duke Energy. The scam text advised of “rolling power outages” on Monday, Jan. 26, which was expected to be one of the coldest nights of the week with temperatures in the teens.

People who clicked on the included link, supposedly for maps and details, were redirected to a fake site, possibly exposing their devices to malware or information theft, according to the Duke Energy scams and fraud website.

Duke Energy posted the notice on its Facebook account, requesting that customers not click links or attachments from unknown sources and to contact Duke directly to discuss their accounts.

Duke Energy Communications Manager Caroline Fountain said the best way for customers to confirm the validity of a text message is by checking Duke Energy’s website, mobile app, or social media pages to confirm updates.

She said customers could visit duke-energy.com/customer-service/report-fraud-and-scams to report scam texts or calls. She also referenced an awareness campaign from November that clarified that Duke Energy never specifies how customers must pay, nor do they threaten immediate service interruption.

“This was just one of many scams that customers report to us through the online tool and customer care center,” Fountain said. “We advise customers to avoid clicking on any suspicious links or attachments.”