The Thousand Oaks Police Department is launching a scam hotline for its citizens. The hotline telephone number (805) 371-8327 will provide information on various current types of scams (telephone, mail, email, text message, etc.) and provide callers the opportunity to leave information on scams they may have been exposed to. The phone line is a recorded informational message available 24 hours a day.
Scams are climbing at an alarming rate, not only in our community, but communities nationwide. The Thousand Oaks Police Department is dedicated to educating the community on current scams and ways to avoid falling victim to them. We have found by educating the community and providing essential
information about current scams, the monetary loss from
victims of scams is avoided.
The scam hotline is not for reporting crimes. If you are a victim of a scam that has resulted in a financial loss, please call Ventura County Sheriff’s Office dispatch at (805) 654-9511 to have an officer take a report.
Every year, thousands of people lose money to scams from a few hundred dollars to their whole life savings. In 2016, the Better Business Bureau reported that approximately 40,000 scams were reported, this does not account for the numerous scams not being reported or the monetary losses, which are in the billions of dollars.
For additional information on current scams contact the Federal Trade Commission at FTC.gov or the Better Business Bureau at
https://www.bbb.org/. To file an internet crime complaint with
the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) at www.ic3.gov
Prepared by Detective Timothy Lohman
Release Date March 22, 2017
Follow-Up Contact: Detective Timothy Lohman – (805) 947-8255
[email protected]
Approved by: Captain Don Aguilar
##
