Court Summons Virus Scam Reported

The Sweetwater County Sheriff’s Office and the Clerk of District Court warned the public Tuesday of an Internet email scam making the rounds.

Clerk of District Court Donna Lee Bobak reported to the Sheriff’s Office that people are getting bogus emails notifying them that they must appear in court on a certain date. The emails encourage them to open an attachment for more details.

“That’s when the scam strikes,” said Captain Rick Hawkins of the Sheriff’s Office. “When you click on the link, you are at risk of being virused by swindlers hoping to obtain sensitive financial information or install malicious software on your computer.”

Bobak explained that District Court appearance notices are sent out by regular mail or are served in person, and are never distributed by email.

One example of the fake email reads as follows:

“Notice to Appear,

You have to appear in the Court on the April 13.

Please, do not forget to bring all the documents related to the case.

Note: The case may be heard by the judge in your absence if you do not come.

You can find the Court Notice is in the attachment.

Kind regards,
Ricky Camp,
District Clerk”

Officials say that anyone one receiving such an email should delete it immediately and never to open email attachments from an unknown source