The Henry County Sheriff’s Office is advising citizens to be cautious of phone and internet scams. The warning comes after a report of a scam received by the office December 20, involving the social media platform, Facebook, and the digital wallet, Venmo. 

According to the report, the victim was selling items on Facebook Marketplace. During the money exchange, the suspect falsified emails and other documents, pretending to be with the Venmo support team. Using different accounts, the suspect then began requesting money from the victim as an insurance to confirm the transaction was legitimate. 

Scammers tend to prey on the good will of people, typically using social media platforms or other web-based applications. They often use several accounts with different names, and resort to pressuring or threats to get what they want. Users are asked to be careful when making online transactions, and never give out personal banking information over the phone or through the internet.