Zelle Scams Incorporate Utility Bill Payments

Fraudsters continue to evolve scams associated with Zelle by introducing urgency to pay supposed delinquent utility bills to avoid service being discontinued. Numerous reports of scammers calling or texting individuals claiming to be from their utility company and stating they did not receive payment for their utility bill and their service will be turned off. However, if they “Zelle” funds to the company immediately, their services will continue.

Details

There are numerous reports of scammers calling, emailing, and/or texting individuals claiming to be from their utility company – using look-alike phone numbers. The scammer states that they did not receive payment for their utility bill and their service will be turned off. However, if they “Zelle” funds to the company immediately their services will continue. Faced with urgency of service disconnection from utility companies (e.g., electricity, water, etc.), the individuals agree to make the Zelle payment, before thinking of the potential ramifications. In some cases, the fraudster’s even have Spanish speaking “utility employees” to assist with those that do not speak English. The use of Zelle and other P2P services has increased in the last several years. Zelle happens to be one of the most popular P2P platforms used by credit unions, but other P2P applications are not immune to fraud.