Local residents victims of nationwide utility-payment scam

President Barack Obama is not offering to pay your monthly bills, but that’s what some scam artists want you to think.

Thousands of Americans have fallen victim to a fast-moving scam that claims to be part of an Obama administration program to help pay utility bills in the midst of a scorching summer.

Here’s how it works:

– Victims typically receive an automated phone call informing them of the nonexistent utility program that will supposedly pay up to $1,000.

– Victims provide their personal information in exchange for a bank routing number and checking account number to provide their utility company when making a payment.

– Payments are initially accepted through online utility payments, but when the payments are processed hours or days later, the fake number is caught and rejected.

The scheme spread quickly across the nation in recent weeks with help from victims who unwittingly shared it on social media sites before realizing they had been conned out of personal information such as Social Security, credit card and checking account numbers.

Colorado Springs Utilities spokesperson Steve Berry tells KRDO NewsChannel 13 that between 40-50 Utilities customers have been duped by these unknown scam artists.

Berry said that one neighborhood in the southeast area of Colorado Springs seems to have been targeted in the past week or so. Berry said they’ve been aware of the scam for a couple of weeks and have posted warnings on their website, Facebook and Twitter pages.

Black Hills Energy has also issued a warning to its customers, though they say they’re not aware of any of their customers being affected.

“We’ve known about this scam and we’ve been prepared to help customers avoid being taken in by this or other scams where someone falsely claims to be with a utility and asks for personal information,” said Randy Winkelman, vice president of customer service for Black Hills Corp. “We caution all of our customers to never provide credit card numbers and other personal or financial information to a suspicious caller. If someone claiming to be with a utility arouses suspicion, call local law enforcement immediately.”

Colorado Springs Utilities said that they understand times are tough for some of their customers and there are legitimate programs that may be of assistance. To find out more, visit www.csu.org or call CSU at 448-4800.

The Better Business Bureau is aware of the scam. They recommend that if you receive a call claiming to be your utility company and feel pressured for immediate payment or personal information, hang up the phone and call the customer service number on your utility bill.