Tips to keep in mind as scams become more prevalent as holiday season nears

With the holiday season fast approaching there are some tips to keep in mind as this also means scams become more prevalent.

A Central Coast family out of Pacific Grove says they have been the target of a number of scams. The brother and the mother were either victimized or close to being victimized until another family member stepped in.

Family members were able to step in to prevent the crime from happening thanks to some of the knowledge they have regarding the crimes, who commits them and who their targets are.

The main tip to keep in mind is to remember insurance or IRS companies will usually not call your personal phone or show up at your door asking for information.

Those companies will already have your information on-hand.

“The very first thing you need to do if you think you’ve been a victim. You need to write everything down,” says Amy Patterson with the District Attorney’s office in Monterey County. “Write down everything you can possibly remember and possible witnesses. Then you need to report it to the proper location.”

The proper location can vary depending on the type of scam.

If it’s a medical insurance card scam the D.A. says you should report it to the Department of Insurance.

If the scam relates to an unfair business practice then the District Attorney’s Office is where you can report it to.

The D.A.’s office says the type of victims that perpetrators tend to look out for are those who come off as “naive” or have the potential to not be “good witnesses” should a crime involving a scam happen.

Once the possible phone scam call does happen it is advised that people should double check their bank and credit card statements to make sure their funds are still intact.

It was just this week Cal-Water sent out an advisory regarding a phone scam related to its services.

Cal-Water wants its customers to never provide information over the phone.