Wood County Sheriff’s Department warns of scam

WISCONSIN RAPIDS – The Wood County Sheriff’s Department is warning people about a scam in the Wisconsin Rapids area.

A citizen contacted the Sheriff’s Department on Tuesday and said he had been contacted by someone claiming to be with Riverview Medical Center, according to a Sheriff’s Department news release. The caller told the citizen he had an outstanding balance with the hospital and requested a debit or credit card number to submit a payment.

The citizen hung up and contacted Riverview Medical Center and was informed the hospital does not call people asking them for credit card numbers, according to the news release. There are many variations of this scam in which callers claim to be from an actual business or credit recovery agencies to try to get victims to provide them with personal or financial information.

Anyone receiving this type of calls is warned not to provide any information no matter how legitimate the caller might seem, according to the news release. Instead, hang up and contact the company directly to verify the call. If it is a scam, call local law enforcement.

Additional information about scams and how to prevent identity theft is available at the Wood County Sheriff’s Department and at www.consumer.ftc.gov.