Oregon, Crook County officials warn the public about phishing scams involving project permit payments

SALEM, Ore. (KTVZ) – The Oregon Building Codes Division and Crook County warned the public Friday of a phishing scam targeting people awaiting approval of a project from their local building or planning department.

In this scam, someone claiming to be from the local building or planning department emails a person to get them to wire money. The scammers are using information about the person and the project to claim their application has been approved, the state agency said.

The next steps in the scam are for the person to reply to the email to request payment advice and wire transfer instructions, pay the invoice using the wire transfer instructions, and then email a copy of the wire transfer receipt to the designated address.

The scammers also state that “all correspondence must be conducted by email to ensure transparency and accurate record-keeping for auditing purposes.”

“Your local building or planning department will not request that you send money to them via wire transfer,” said Alana Cox, administrator of the Building Codes Division, part of the Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services.

The Building Codes Division recommends that people check to make sure the correspondence is from the correct person and jurisdiction.

“Local building and planning departments are based in either your city or county. If someone claims to be from those departments, go to the official city or county website and find the contact information there,” Cox said. “Then, you can call or email them to check if what you received is legitimate.”

The Building Codes Division has a list of local building departments at https://oregon.gov/bcd/jurisdictions.

You can follow these tips to avoid a phishing scam:

• Do not send money to anyone you have not met in person, and be cautious about sharing personal or financial information.
• Do not transfer money to unknown people or intermediaries. Use only a licensed money transmitter if a third party needs to be involved.
• Do not give out personal information by phone, email, or online. Government agencies and financial institutions, such as banks and credit unions, will not ask for this information.
• Always be careful opening emails, clicking on links, or downloading files, regardless of the sender.
• Always be suspicious of claims about lottery or sweepstakes winnings that require personal information to receive the reward.
• Always ignore pop-ups requesting account information or offering to increase computer speed or to clean the computer.

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About Oregon BCD: The Building Codes Division administers the statewide building code, which provides uniform standards that ensure newly constructed residential and commercial buildings are safe for people to occupy. The division is part of the Department of Consumer and Business Services, Oregon’s largest consumer protection and business regulatory agency. Visit oregon.gov/bcd and dcbs.oregon.gov.

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Separately, Crook County issued this news release Friday:

Crook County Warns of Payment Scams Targeting Permit Applicants

(Prineville, OR) - Crook County is warning residents, contractors, and local businesses to be on alert for scam attempts involving fake payment requests for building permits, land use applications, or other county services.

The County has learned that bad actors are using publicly available information to contact individuals with pending permits or applications, falsely claiming that payment is due. Scammers are then requesting payment via wire transfer, Venmo, Cash App, or Zelle.

Please note: Crook County will never request payment through wire transfer, Venmo, Cash App, or Zelle.

If you receive a suspicious message or invoice requesting payment for a county-related fee, do not send funds. Instead, contact the appropriate county office directly to verify.

“If you have questions about an invoice, please call 541-447-6554 to confirm before sending payment,” said Will Van Vactor, County Manager. “We want to make sure our residents and local businesses are protected from these types of scams.”

Similar scams have been reported in other Oregon counties, and Crook County is committed to keeping residents informed and protected from these fraudulent attempts.

Residents are encouraged to report any suspected scam attempts to the Crook County Sheriff’s Office or their local law enforcement agency.