One of the largest utility providers in the region is warning customers about a phone scam. MidAmerican Energy spokeswoman Ashton Newman says 1,500 customers contacted the utility to report receiving a suspect call in 2014.
Of the 1,500 customers who contacted MidAmerican about receiving a suspect call last year, just over 40 of those customers reported losing money or disclosing personal information to the scammer. Newman says the scam artist, claiming to work for MidAmerican, is typically persistent and demands money by threatening to cut off utility services.
The thieves often go so far as to make it appear to Caller ID systems that the scam call is coming from the utility. The scammers can be aggressive, which Newman says isn’t a technique an actual MidAmerican Energy employee would use.
