Threatening callers claiming to be with UPS are likely criminals, Nebraska police say

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) — Callers claiming to work for UPS have been contacting people around southeast Nebraska, and authorities believe they’re looking to commit crimes.

Ryan Sothan with the Nebraska Attorney General’s Office said they’ve had multiple reports of the imposter scam.

He said scammers are asking for personal information like your first and last name, address and social security number.

“It’s quite possible that somebody is contacting you to confirm your whereabouts and therefore leaving you, your home, or your possessions potentially in peril,” Sothan said.

Usually, these scams come in the form of an email or text message with an embedded link, but lately, victims have been receiving phone calls.

Some people have even reported receiving threats while on the phone with these callers.

“It’s never been easier than it is right now to spoof the caller I.D. to have it say whatever it is that you want,” said Josh Planos with the Better Business Bureau. “Also, the mere act of picking up the phone is indicating to the scammer that there is an active participant on the other end of the line regardless of how that conversation plays out.”

That’s why the York Police Department says people will definitely want to keep their guard up if they receive any unexpected calls in the coming days.

One trend they’ve noticed with these potential scammers is that they may have a foreign accent, in addition to claiming to be a UPS representative.

Police say if you ever question the validity of a call, ask for the person’s first and last name.

Then get a callback number as well, and immediately share that information with your local authorities.

UPS also has a statement on handling potential fraud.

Its website says, “If UPS contacts you regarding a package, the UPS representative will always be able to provide a tracking number, which you can verify on our website. You also should know that UPS may contact you from time to time regarding service offerings or for marketing purposes, but you may always verify our phone number and call back before proceeding.”