The caller will tell you he is Sheriff John Anderson, and will inform you Federal complaints of fraud and forgery have been filed against you, and that you may be subject to arrest. To clear up the matter, he will order you to call an Officer John Harris with the Department of Justice at 717-889-1003.The scam is going on in other states. The calls are placed by someone who impersonates a law enforcement official, and “spoofing” caller ID’s.
"Spoofing" is when someone deliberately falsifies the telephone number relayed from their phone, so that the impersonated information appears on your caller ID.
There is no way to know where the caller is located, says Sheriff Anderson, adding that a majority of these schemes generate from overseas.
Fortunately for the victim, she didn’t call that 717 number, instead, she called us.
Phone number "spoofing" is a violation of FCC rules, punishable by up to $10,000 per incident. Any violations of the law, known as the Truth in Caller ID Act of 2009, can be reported at http://www.fcc.gov/complaints.
