Ignore calls, texts, and emails threatening to arrest you for missing jury duty

Did you get a call claiming you missed jury duty and need to pay? Followed by a text or email with official-looking documents saying there’s a warrant out for your arrest? As alarming as these things sound, they’re a scam designed to steal your money.

Most jury duty scams start with an “urgent” call from someone claiming to be a U.S. Marshal or an officer from your local police department. To catch you off guard, the caller might already know things about you, like your full name or address. They say you missed jury duty (you didn’t) and threaten to arrest you (they won’t) unless you pay a fine using a payment app or cryptocurrency.

That scam is probably familiar so far, but now scammers also text or email you a document that looks like an official warrant for your arrest, complete with how much you owe for missing jury duty. While this might make the scam look more convincing, it’s all fake.

Here’s how you know it’s a scam:

• Real law enforcement will never text or email you an arrest warrant.
• Even if the caller ID looks like it’s coming from your local police department or the U.S. Marshals, real law enforcement officers won’t call to say they’ll arrest you. And they won’t threaten to arrest you if you hang up.
• Courts never demand payment over the phone. In fact, no government agency will.
• Only scammers say you can only pay with a payment app, cryptocurrency, gift cards, or a wire transfer service like Western Union or MoneyGram.

If you get a call like this, tell the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. And if you already paid a scammer, read What To Do if You Were Scammed to find out what to do next.