OAK RIDGE (WATE) - A utility payment scam is hitting customers in several states, including Tennessee.
Utility companies, consumer advocates, and city officials, including those in Oak Ridge, are warning utility customers about the scam.
Customers in several states, including Tennessee, have already been taken in by the scam, with up to 10,000 known cases.
The scam involves a false claim that a new federal government assistance program authorized by President Barack Obama will make payments on utility bills.
Scammers spread their claims by calling or visiting customers in person, by posting fliers and through social media and text messages.
Reports say victims of the scam have been defrauded from $100 to $2,000.
The scammers obtain that money by giving fraudulent bank account and routing numbers to utility customers to use when paying bills, but only after the customers have provided a Social Security number and other personal information.
Oak Ridge officials say their are no known cases of utility customers there who have fallen for the scam, but the city is taking steps to warn customers.
