Scammers calling using EPB's phone number to collect fake payments

Don't always trust your caller ID, warned officials at Chattanooga's city-owned utility on Tuesday.

Scammers are spoofing EPB's phone number so that it appears as if an official from the power company is calling to obtain immediate payments for past due amounts. The number that appears is 648-1372 EPB, though the person calling may not be from EPB and there may be no actual past due payment.

In what should be a warning sign for savvy customers, the scammers posing as EPB workers are asking Chattanooga residents to buy a reloadable debit card like a MoneyPak, then call a 1-800 number to make payment on the fictitious past due amount.

"This is a scam," EPB warned in a news release. "While EPB does give courtesy calls to remind customers of past due accounts, EPB never instructs customers to make immediate payments with pre-paid debit cards."

Any customer receiving such a fraudulent call should contact EPB at 423-648-1372 to report the time and date of the call, and thus help locate the source of the scam.

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