Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission warning of scam calls from Commission phone number
The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) issued a consumer alert warning on Thursday involving phone calls that falsely claim to come from the PUC.
The warning states that the PUC received more than 70 calls on Thursday from consumers who claimed to get suspicious calls appearing to come from the Commission.
Although the warning states that many did not answer the call, some returned it after researching it and finding that it belonged to the PUC's Philadelphia office.
The warning also states that the aim of the scam callers is to mislead consumers and pressure them into making payments.
The scam callers are using the PUC's phone number in the caller ID using a practice known as "spoofing".
According to reports from consumers and staff in the warning:
- The callers claim to be representatives of the Commission.
- The callers will tell consumers that PECO, PPL or another utility has requested to switch the consumer to a different utility of energy supplier. If the consumer asks about the switch, the scammer claims to have a voice recording authorizing it.
- The caller then falsely states that the only way to cancel the switch and remain with their original utility is to pay a cancellation fee immediately or face losing their service.
The PUC wished to remind consumers in the alert that the Commission does not make direct calls to demand payment, confirm supplier switches or threaten termination.
The warning also states that the incident has been reported to law enforcement, and utilities across the state are being contacted to alert them about the potential scam calls and gather any relevant information.
The Commission also shared tips with consumers to avoid scams, including the following:
- Do not provide personal or financial information to unsolicited callers, such as utility account information, bank account details, credit card, driver license, date of birth, social security number or address information
- Do not trust caller ID alone. Scammers can spoof legitimate phone numbers to make the call look credible.
- Contact the utility or supplier directly using the phone number found on the bill of the consumer if there are questions about the account or a potential switch.
