The FBI announced Monday that there has been a 3,000% increase in reports of scam calls coming from its Albany office's phone line.
Scammers posing as FBI agents and bankers have targeted the Capital Region's elderly population seeking sensitive information.
Special Agent in Charge Craig Tremaroli said at a press conference at the field office that scammers are using threats of arrest to keep victims on the phone.
“I'm here to tell you, the FBI will not call you and ask for personally identifiable information,” Tremaroli said. “We will not ask you to move to an encrypted third-party app, we will not demand money, and the FBI will not demand arrest.”
Tremaroli said those who have received calls should hang up and report the calls to the FBI.
“We want to arm our community and the public to say we're not going to be a victim to this," Tremaroli said. “We're going to identify that this is a scam. We're going to hang up the phone call, and we're going to contact authorities and report it."