The Carson City Treasurer’s Office and Carson City Utility Billing have become aware of fraudulent water bill emails requesting past-due payments from Carson City water subscribers, “similar to fraudulent emails that are currently taking place throughout the rest of the United States,” city officials said in a news release.
“Carson City reminds its water subscribers that Carson City does not send emails to water subscribers for outstanding or delinquent payments. When Carson City sends any outstanding or delinquent notices to water subscribers, these notices come in printed form from the Carson City Treasurer’s Office, which is sent by regular first-class mail through the United States Postal Service,” the release said.
While the fraudulent emails and notices currently circulating may appear legitimate, they lack the detailed information that an actual water/sewer/stormwater billing notice from Carson City Utility Billing would have, the city said.
Examples of the kind of information an actual notice would have include:
• The customer’s complete account number and identification number (this is not public record).
• Parcel ID number.
• Name of the actual individual whose name is responsible for the water/sewer/stormwater
service.
• Actual mailing address for the water bill (which can differ from the service address).
“It is important to remember that fraudulent actors and scammers utilize various schemes to make their illegal activities appear legitimate. Whether through phone calls, emails, or text messages, there are indicators that residents can use to determine their legitimacy. Some of the indicators that fraudulent actors and scammers will use include pressure tactics — such as in the current fraudulent emails circulating now — to intimidate their targets to submit payment or else face termination of utility service,” the city said.
The threat of additional fees has also surfaced in such scams, the city said.
“Carson City does not turn off water/utility service for any outstanding amounts owed and will not interrupt or threaten water subscribers with this type of action,” the city said. “Instead, Carson City will transfer any unpaid or overdue amounts owed for water/utility service to the annual real property tax bill in June.”
The city urged residents “to remain cautious of any suspicious emails pressuring them to submit immediate payment or click on a link asking them to submit sensitive or confidential information.
These emails should be avoided and blocked, the city said.
“If a customer receives an email advising an outstanding amount owed for water service and has questions about the email, the customer can contact the Carson City Treasurer’s Office at 775-887-2092 or email at treasurer@carson.org,” according to the city.