The Suffolk County Sheriff's Office would like to take this opportunity to warn the public regarding a new identity theft scam involving Amazon.

Please take a look at the attached photo. People have been receiving these letters by both regular mail and e-mail, indicating that a hold has been placed on their account and all pending orders until such time as billing information can be verified.

Unsuspecting people will tap on the link, which directs you to a website that looks like it's Amazon. In reality, it's a data mining site that steals your identity in order to secure mail order merchandise under your name and bank account.

Don't fall for this! If you have questions or real concerns about your Amazon account, contact Amazon directly through known and trusted links, and not through links provided in e-mails or text messages.

For more information from Amazon, visit https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=G4YFYCCNUSENA23B

This is a phishing scam that has been occurring recently. People have been receiving a text message stating that there is a package that is waiting for them and to click the link to arrange delivery. While this sounds innocent, there is no package and the link directs the user to a page that tricks him/her into giving personal information.

A good rule of thumb is that when in doubt, contact the company using a phone number or email that you know is legit. Do not use the information in the text message.

Some users report this scam to be happening as students return to college. The text says that a package has been waiting for them since they abruptly left last spring. Remember, if you get an unexpected text message about a package, don’t click on any links.

To report fishing scams, forward it to SPAM (7726), and then report it to the FTC at ftc.gov/complaint.

Did someone tell you to pay them with a gift card? It's a scam.

The Suffolk County Sheriff's Office has become aware of scams involving gift cards. One such scam involved a caller who said he was from the Suffolk County Sheriff's Office and there was an arrest warrant issued for the victim. This warrant could be satisfied by paying over the phone with retail gift cards. The caller ID information even showed the Suffolk County Sheriff's Office phone number.

This is a scam- the Suffolk County Sheriff's Office will never request that you satisfy a fine or warrant over the phone with a retail gift card. Likewise, the IRS, local government entities, and the federal government will not request payment by gift card either.

if you receive a call like this, hang up and contact the agency back using a known number or email, not one provided by the caller.

For more information, visit https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/blog/2020/09/did-someone-tell-you-pay-gift-cards-its-scam or https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/paying-scammers-gift-cards.