Greg's Corner

Should you give a stranger an authorization code to get your pet back?

By Greg Collier

Proving that they’re completely heartless, scammers will even try to scam people whose pets have gone missing. The most common lost pet scam is when the scammers claim they have your dog before asking you for money, either as a reward or as a ransom. In most cases, the scammers never had your dog and are hoping to catch you at a vulnerable time. More recently, we’ve seen a report about a new type of lost pet scam that online sellers have been the target of.

In Ohio, The Better Business Bureau is warning about this scam, which is currently targeting local residents. One resident stated that she put up a social media post about her lost dog with her phone number attached. Within minutes of posting, she received a phone call from a California number. The caller said they had found the dog. However, in order to verify the owner, the caller said they would be sending a six-digit code through a text message and that the dog’s owner should give that code number to the caller.

If you’re a frequent online seller, you may recognize this as the Google Voice scam. Google Voice is a service that allows you to have a second phone number. The second number is not only ted to your Google account, but it’s tied to your primary phone number as well. The six-digit code is an authorization code for when you sign up for Google Voice. If you give that code to a scammer, they’ll get a phone number they can use in future scams that is tied to your phone number. While this scam may not cost you any money, it can cost you a lot of inconvenience if the number gets traced back to you.

If you ever lose a pet and someone has claimed to have found them, ask the caller for a picture of the pet. This way, you can verify if they really have the pet. If they give you an excuse like their camera is broken, it’s more than likely a scam. To help prevent scams like this, we recommend getting your pets microchipped, even if they’re indoor pets. You can never plan for when your pet may make a run for it.