News

First Energy Warns of Utility Scam

Updated Monday, June 11, 2012

Written By: Renata Stiehl

      HARRISBURG, PA (WENY) -- A Pennsylvania utility company is warning customers about a scam.
     Penelec's parent company, First Energy, says scammers are telling people about a phony federal program that helps pay utility bills. They ask for social security numbers and other sensitive information, then give customers a fake bank routing number to pay their bills.
      Some scammers are going door-to-door, while others use the phone, fliers, email, text messages and social media.
      First Energy says utility employees will never ask for sensitive information, and you shouldn't let anyone claiming to be a utility worker into your home without proper identification.

Here's additional information from First Energy:

FirstEnergy offers these tips to help safeguard its customers from scams:

FirstEnergy utility employees do not ask for sensitive information such as social security numbers, bank account numbers, etc.
Customers should only use methods authorized by FirstEnergy to pay their electric bills
Don't allow persons claiming to be utility employees into your home without checking for proper identification
FirstEnergy utility employees always carry photo identification, and many of our field employees wear uniforms and drive clearly marked company vehicles
FirstEnergy utility employees typically visit a home only in response to a service request. If no one scheduled an appointment, do not allow the person through the door