Have you received text messages, emails, or messages through email from someone claiming to be your pastor or priest and asking for money or gift cards, indicating it’s an emergency? Don’t give. It’s not your pastor. It’s a scam.

Some parishioners have been targeted by these fraudsters and it’s not just happening in here. The Diocese of Austin, Texas; the Diocese of Scranton, Pennsylvania, and the Archdiocese of Miami, Florida and others also have reported the scam and the Texas attorney general issued a consumer alert about it. The alert indicates that the scammers are probably using information found on church websites or in online parish bulletins to trick parish members into parting with their cash. 

The Archdiocese of Miami reports, “This scam is probably a variation on others: texts and robocalls purportedly from the IRS threatening the recipient with jail time and fines for not paying back taxes, or from utilities threatening to cut off electricity or phone service for non-payment.”

Don’t fall for it! Here’s what to know and do:

• First, know that your pastor or associate pastor will never contact a parishioner directly with an emergency request for cash or gift cards. Messages asking parishioners to help fulfill a need would come through the parish’s or the diocese’s official communication channels or be accomplished through a collection approved by the diocese. If you’re not sure about a text or email you’ve received, do not engage or respond and call your parish office right away to notify a staff member. In addition, please note that neither your parish nor the diocese will ever sell or give away parishioners’ personal information.
• Before you act or reply, simply call Fr. Niccolls at the rectory to inquire about any request he might have made.  

7/2020 https://grdiocese.org/priest-impersonation-scam-text-email-gift-cards/