The state treasurer hopes to head off an email scam claiming that a lot of money has been found by the unclaimed property program.
It’s happened in other states but Treasurer Clint Zweifel has heard of no victims here yet.
An email supposedly from a guy named Jeff Smith, the director of the National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators tells the recipient that 2.8-million unclaimed dollars is waiting for them to claim. All the recipient has to do is call a lawyer in the United Kingdom and provide personal financial information. It’s a costly phone call. And Zweifel says the whole thing is bogus.
Zweifel says his unclaimed property division does not use e-mails to notify people if something is found unless people have asked to be notified. He says the division does not ask for detailed personal information and it never charges a fee. He says it will never direct somebody to a third party who charges a fee. He says anyone contacted by the scammers should terminate the call and notify his office.
Interview with Zweifel 4:09 mp3
