(WVEC) -- A scam is targeting people in Hampton Roads.
Con artists have tried to sell DirecTV subscriptions. State and local officials said they've seen a spike in our area.
Here's how it works – Someone calls with a good deal on a DirecTV subscription. Instead of getting a bill in the mail, the person on the phone demands to be paid with a prepaid cash card.
Cash cards can be purchased at convenience or drug stores. Once you someone buys and sends the prepaid cards, they are difficult to track. So, advocates said victims end up losing the money and don't get a DirecTV subscription.
“We really want to put consumers on notice to be careful when they get calls like that,” Attorney General Mark Herring said. “Those high-pressure sales tactics, demanding payment with prepaid cards, those are all red flags to be on your guard.”
The Norfolk Sheriff's Office and Virginia Attorney General’s Office are putting out the warning on this new twist to a scam they’ve seen time and time again.
“Scam artists will very quickly change the company or say they're from some other government agency, something like that or change locations really quickly,” Herring said. “That's why it's really important to get the word out as fast as possible so consumers are on the lookout.”
An investigator from the Attorney Generals’ Consumer Protection Section is stationed in the Norfolk Sheriff's Office, so the two can coordinate investigations in Hampton Roads.
They want citizens to remember no legitimate business or government agency will demand payment with a prepaid card.
If anyone has questions or think they've been a victim of this scam, you can contact the Attorney General’s Office:
• By phone: (800) 552-9963
• By email: consumer@oag.state.va.us