Press Release from the Oconee County Sherriff's Office:
Oconee County Sheriff’s Office Warns the Public About Duke Energy Scam
The Oconee County Sheriff’s Office is notifying the public that we have received a multitude of calls throughout the last week pertaining to a phone scam from an automated service claiming to be Duke Energy.
The scam will begin with the caller telling the customer that they will be disconnected from power if they do not pay a sum of money in a certain window of time (20 minutes or less generally), followed by a request to go to CVS and purchase a green dot money pack to pay their “bill”. Duke Energy will NEVER request a customer to do any of the aforementioned things to pay their bill.
Ryan Mosier from Duke Energy would like the public to be informed that:
• Duke Power will NEVER shut off a customer’s power in a short matter of time with no prior warning
• Customers receive multiple notices over several months before the extreme step of cutting their power off is taken
• Duke Power will NEVER tell a customer to get a prepaid card. There are a number of convenient ways for customers to pay their bills, but Duke Energy will NEVER tell a customer a specific way to do that.
The Oconee County Sheriff’s Office advises the public to stay alert for telephone and internet scams.
If you suspect that you are being targeted in a scam, please call the Oconee County Sheriff’s Office at (864)638-4111. Any questions in reference to this Duke Energy scam can be directed to Duke Energy at (800) 777-1004.
