Santa Cruz deputies warn people of common scam tactics ahead of tax season

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY, Calif. (KION-TV) -- Deputies in Santa Cruz announced Tuesday that they respond to scam calls almost daily, especially this time of year from mainly elderly residents.

They said that there are a handful of common scams to beware of, based on data that they collected over the past few months.

Some of these scams, according to deputies, include:

• The scammer calling from a “Second Chance Monitoring and Rehabilitation” service saying that the reporting person's son--who was incarcerated at the time--could be released to the family with an ankle monitor for $2,038. The scammer gave the victim a Venmo account and money was sent over. Deputies say that the scammer called the victim back to try and get another $2,038, but the caller became suspicious and reported the scam.

• A victim scammed out of $8,500 from a fake bail claim where the victim thought a courier was picking up cash to bail out her grandson.

• A victim who ended up reporting to 9-1-1 that she received a phone call from someone claiming to be “the Mexican drug cartel” and having kidnapped her daughter.

• The victim reporting a scam that the company she worked for had been victimized fall of 2024, and resulting in the victim paying out $82,000 to an unknown suspect posing as a company they had done business within the past.

• The victim reported that someone tried scamming her by sending her a phishing email and phone number, but the scam went unsuccessful.

• A victim reporting her computer received a pop-up claiming her computer had a virus, then she called the number on the pop-up before suspecting a scam and not following through.

• The victim reporting that he received a text message from an unknown sender in February regarding a verification code that later resulted in the victim being scammed out of $8,100.

• A victim reporting she had applied to rent a property listed on Craigslist for $2,000 per month, sending over a wire transfer of $4,000 and then $2,340 for rent. The victim went by the address and learned the transaction was a scam.

• A victim reporting being scammed out of $60,000 by suspects posing as Apple Tech Support and Bank Fraud Investigators.

• The victim calling to report he had been scammed out of $1,700 dollars after receiving a fraudulent Amazon alert from fraud investigators convincing the victim to buy gift cards for various stores.

• A victim reporting that he had been scammed by someone claiming to be from the fire inspection and saying that the victim needed to pay $6,000 to the fire department. The victim deposited $1,360 into a “Coin Me” before a co-worker informed him the whole thing was a scam.

• The victim reported that while working on her computer it went down, a voice came on offering her assistance. She agreed and gave them remote access. She called their tech support number and talked to a “John Williams”. Eventually they offered her a 2-year protection program and she gave them $500.

The Santa Cruz Sheriff's Office is encouraging people to communicate with each other over potential scams and how to avoid them.

They say in addition to this, they offer "scam alert" magnets for pickup.

"These scams are occurring nationwide and at an alarming rate," wrote deputies on Facebook Tuesday. "With tax season approaching, we anticipate an increase in scams impersonating the IRS and other tax-related agencies."

They are also warning people that with emerging modern technology, scammers have become increasingly more crafty. Officials warn not to immediately trust a caller's identity based on what they say, and red flags to watch for include requests for payment via gift cards, Bitcoin, or cryptocurrency. "This is always a scam," say deputies.