Bainbridge police issue scam alert on bogus locksmith website
Published 9:16 am Saturday, August 27, 2016
The Bainbridge Island Police Department is warning residents to be wary of a new scam that’s making the rounds.
Officials said they recently learned of a hustle involving phony listings for locksmith services on the website www.wastatebiz.com.
The scam starts when someone looking for locksmith services on Bainbridge Island calls one of the numbers listed on the site www.wastatebiz.com/locksmith/bainbridge-island.html. But when people call looking for locksmith services, they are asked to provide credit card information up front.
The locksmith services are never provided, and soon after getting the customer’s credit card information, fraudulent charges start popping up on the customer’s credit card account.
“Bainbridge Island Police Detective Sergeant Scott Weiss investigated the listings on this website after we received the complaint,” said Chief of Police Matthew Hamner. “Detective Sergeant Weiss determined that most of the listings on the site were not for legitimate Bainbridge Island businesses.”
“When looking to establish a relationship with a business it’s always a good idea to utilize tools such as the Better Business Bureau’s website or crowdsourcing (asking friends and family or utilizing online tools such as Facebook, Angie’s List or Yelp) to determine if a business is legitimate,” Hamner said.
“Additionally, I advise that you exercise caution when giving out credit card information over the phone, especially prior to any work being completed.”
