WASHINGTON, DC / ACCESSWIRE / November 15, 2023 / Pepco and more than 100 U.S. and Canadian energy companies are taking the opportunity to join Utilities United Against Scams as part of International Fraud Awareness Week, Nov. 12-18 and remind customers to be vigilant and on the lookout for imposters using energy-related scams to steal money and personal information.
Scams occur throughout the year, but Pepco generally sees an increase in attempted scam reports during the holiday season. Scammers take advantage of their victim's stress and higher than usual activity levels that come with the holiday season, to trick customers into providing their personal or financial information and making false payments under the pretense of keeping their service active. Scammers are also attempting to take advantage of those still facing economic challenges while recovering from the impacts of the pandemic in an effort to pressure families and businesses who may be struggling with past-due balances.
"Customer safety and well-being are high priorities, and we want to ensure our communities are aware and prepared of scammers' attempts to defraud or steal from them," said Morlon Bell-Izzard, senior vice president and chief customer officer for Pepco Holdings. "We are grateful to join forces with our utility partners to shine a light on this important issue to ensure our customers can protect themselves and take a stand against fraudulent activity."
Common schemes involve scammers' use of technology to replicate a company's phone number through caller ID-also known as "spoofing"-threatening to turn off a customer's service unless they make a direct payment with a prepaid cash card. Some scams involve imposters posing as Pepco employees to gain entry into a customer's home to steal belongings, with other activities involving scammers sending emails to businesses, requesting that they send Pepco payments to fake pay sites.
Here are some tips to help identify scams:
Pepco will never come to a customer's home or business to:
- Ask for immediate payment with a prepaid cash card or cryptocurrency.
- Ask for their Pepco account number or other personal information, such as a driver's license number.
- If a person comes to your home or business regarding disconnection of service, please contact the company to discuss the status of your account.
Pepco will never call a customer to:
- Ask for their account number.
- Ask for personal information, such as their Social Security number or bank information.
- Ask them to make a direct payment with a prepaid cash card.
To identify an actual Pepco employee, remember:
- All Pepco field employees wear a uniform with the Pepco logo, including shirt and safety vest.
- Pepco employees visibly display a company ID badge with the Pepco logo and employee's name.
Commercial customers are also advised to protect themselves from potential scam attempts. These offenders impersonate Pepco and other trusted organizations through email or other forms of communications to deceive businesses into providing financial information or making an urgent payment.
To help protect their business from scams, employees at local businesses should:
- Carefully review emails originating from outside your organization's network.
- Check the name of the sender and business and make sure it matches the name and business in the email address. Look for typos or slight image alterations within the email.
If a customer ever questions the legitimacy of a call or visit to their home regarding disconnection of service, they should contact Pepco at 202-833-7500. Any customer who believes they have been a target of a scam is urged to contact their local police and call Pepco immediately to report the situation.
To learn more about preventing scams, visit pepco.com for more tips and information.
Pepco also reminds customers to visit pepco.com/WaysToSave to learn about energy efficiency programs and energy saving information to help them reduce their energy usage. The company also encourages customers to visit pepco.com/EnergyAssistance or call 202833-7500 for more information about helpful energy assistance programs and services.
To learn more about Pepco, visit The Source, Pepco's online newsroom. Find additional information by visiting pepco.com, on Facebook at facebook.com/PepcoConnect and on X at twitter.com/PepcoConnect. Pepco's mobile app is available at pepco.com/MobileApp.
Pepco is a unit of Exelon (Nasdaq: EXC), a Fortune 250 company and the nation's largest utility company, serving more than 10 million customers. Pepco provides safe and reliable energy service to approximately 919,000 customers in the District of Columbia and Maryland.
Contact:
Chuck McDade
Pepco Communications
202-872-2680 (media hotline)
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SOURCE: Pepco