The East Lansing Police Department, or ELPD, recently was used in a online scam, according to ELPD Lt. Scott Wriggelsworth.
The victim, a Charlotte, Mich., resident, was using the Internet when a pop-up ad appeared on the screen. The pop-up ad stated ELPD and the Department of Homeland Security had frozen the victim’s computer because of a security risk and a $300 fee must be paid.
The victim paid the $300 dollars to an unknown third party via the Internet.
ELPD is not investigating the incident and there currently are no suspects. This is the first time ELPD has been informed of its name being used in the scam, Wriggelsworth said.
“There’s really no way to investigate (this) because it was one pop-up and, as soon as it was paid, it disappeared,” Wriggelsworth said. “It was not to be found again.”
ELPD is aware of the scam and are encouraging community members to be aware of the incident. Community members have been asked to contact their local police department if they have been a victim of this or something similar.
“This doesn’t happen all that often when someone is surfing the web,” Wriggelsworth said. “A lot of times, it (goes) through email. It’s just unique that it happened on the Internet instead of email.”
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