Scams are on the rise in the Bay Area this holiday season, reaching people through text messages, phone calls, and even knocking on front doors.
Scammers are even posing as law enforcement and utility workers to obtain people's information.
"Customers are telling us that people are coming to their front doors, knocking on their doors, letting them know they are water agency employees and are there to test their taps," said Andrea Pook of the East Bay Municipal Utility District.
In the past few days, the utility said it has gotten over 40 calls from customers about the scam, primarily in Richmond and Oakland.
The agency said workers will never ask to enter a home, and if they do, it's for a scheduled visit.
"We do see this around the holidays, and people should be careful," said Pook.
Separately, experts said scammers are sending people text messages asking them to click on a link to confirm an address for delivering packages.
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"Often, it'll say just put in a credit card for a certain amount, and now they've got your credit card and can charge you a bunch of charges," said Alex Quilici, CEO of Youmai.
Some scammers are going as far as using police department numbers and posing as law enforcement.
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Earlier this week, the Fairfield Police Department arrested a woman accused of pretending to be in an office and taking thousands of dollars from a victim's bank account.
In the South Bay, Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office said scammers are using AI to impersonate voices and use the real names of deputies.
"AI can fake the texts, videos, pictures, and voices, and it's very easy to do that," said Ahmed Banafa, a cybersecurity expert at San Jose State University. The first line of defense is to think twice before you give money because authorities are not going to ask you for money over the phone; that's not how it works."
