City of Warren police are raising the alarm about a scam that invokes the Federal Trade Commission.

Captain Jeff Dougherty said the department “has received several incidents where residents are being contacted, via computer, advising that their computers are in jeopardy of virus(s).”

He explained the potential victims are asked to contact a person with the Federal Trade Commission and threatened with compromised Social Security information.

“At this point, they are instructed to take money out of their savings, checking or any other personal account and deposit it at the nearest bitcoin depot,” Dougherty explained. “They give a confirmation number to the scammer and are now out of the money.”

He stressed the federal government will not contact people from private cell phones to try to elicit a deposit into a foreign account.

“Scammers will tell you not to tell anyone about the phone calls, try to scare you and or threaten you,” he said. “They will intimidate you and make you feel like you have done something wrong and or will lose all of your money if you don’t listen to them.”

Dougherty encouraged anyone who receives a call like this to report it to law enforcement.

“Family members should be having conversations with each other regarding scams and how not to fall victim to them,” he added.