Oregon Attorney General John Kroger is warning Oregon citizens about a jury duty scam that seeks to trick consumers into providing personal, confidential information.
The scam involves emails and telephone calls that claim recipients have missed jury duty and will be arrested or face other legal sanctions if they do not turn over Social Security numbers, bank accounts information or dates of birth.
Oregonians recently have been receiving emails with what appear to be subpoenas from the U.S. District Court. These are invalid and may contain harmful links to viruses and identity thieves.
Most of the bogus emails come from "uscourts.com," which is not a government Web site.
Oregon residents receiving jury scam calls or emails should call local police or the Attorney General's consumer protection hotline at 1-877-877-9392 or online at www.doj.state.or.us.
Consumers who think they may have turned over personal financial information to jury duty scammers should go to the Federal Trade Commission's website at www.ftc.gov/idtheft for specific directions in defending themselves against ID theft.
Consumers who have been legitimately summoned for jury duty may find information at the Oregon Judicial Department's website: www.ojd.state.or.us/jurorinfo/index.
