A Salina woman is out $1,000 after falling for a scam.
Salina Police Captain Paul Forrester said this morning that a 46-year-old woman told police that she had received a call on Friday from someone claiming to be with the Social Security Administration. The caller told the woman that she needed to pay $1,000 or her Social Security number would be suspended, he said.
According to Forrester, the caller told the woman that she needed to pay with Walmart gift cards. She purchased two $500 Walmart gift cards and then called the person back and provided the numbers on the cards, Forrester said.
According to information on the Social Security Administration website, Social Security personnel will "never require payment by retail gift card, cash, wire transfer, internet currency, or prepaid debit card."
The Social Security Administration website noted that "If you receive a call or email that you believe to be suspicious, about a problem with your Social Security number or account, hang up or do not respond. We encourage the public to report Social Security phone scams using our dedicated online form, at https://oig.ssa.gov. Please share this information with your friends and family, to help spread awareness about phone scams. For more information, please visit https://oig.ssa.gov/scam."