Some Alabama Concealed Carry Permit Holders Targeted by Scammers

BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA – Concealed Carry Permit holders in Jefferson County, Alabama have become the latest group of consumers to be targeted by scammers seeking to illegally obtain personal information from unsuspecting citizens.  CCP holders in Jefferson County, Alabama have been warned by their Sheriff’s Office not to fall victim to a recent scam being perpetrated through text messages.

The bogus text messages bear a message that the permit needs to be changed or renewed and instructs receivers to click on a link in the message to provide their information. The JCSO is one of many agencies across the nation that use Permitium software for online renewals.

Permitium offers a dozen different software solutions for public safety agencies including weapons permitting, license processing, fingerprint processing and sex offender tracking, among others.

Permitium has sent a legitimate email to all site users regarding the scam, which includes the following statement.  “The link is malicious and has NOT been generated by Permitium or your local agency Permit Director Software. NO TEXT MESSAGES FROM PERMITIUM CONTAIN LINKS.”

The email also contained a link to an official government website where that allows citizens to report a wide variety of scams. The website is www.usa.gov/stop-scams-fraud.

As with most scams, they may spread locally, regionally, nationally, or globally. The widespread use of computers, laptops, tablets, smart phones, and other devices has allowed scammers to attack millions of users daily. Legitimate businesses, such as banks, credit card companies, major retailers, communication providers and governments will never request information through email or text messages, and any links or attachments should be treated as potentially dangerous.

Most links will take you to a bogus page that may even bear the name and logo of a legitimate business, but entering information such as your name, address, phone number, birthdate, social security number, banking or credit card account numbers, PINs or passwords will deliver your personal information directly to identity thieves who will either use your information or sell it on the dark web.

Once your personal information is “in the wild” it can be used to drain your bank account, charge purchases to your credit accounts, apply for various types of credit, obtain prescription medications, or a host of other illegitimate activities.