In some Bankruptcy Courts across the country, debtors have received fraudulent phone calls where the caller claims to be calling from the Bankruptcy Court. The scammer will demand payment by methods such as Zelle, Venmo, or pre-paid credit card. The scammer may sound convincing, using real Court addresses and real names of Court officials to make the scam appear to be credible. Scammers may even “spoof” the phone number on caller ID so that the call falsely appears to be from a Court number.

The Bankruptcy Court will never contact a debtor by phone to request payment. Debtors should not provide these callers with any personal information, account numbers, or money. All payment notices from the Bankruptcy Court are sent by United States mail or by Electronic Bankruptcy Noticing. Debtors are not allowed to pay Court fees using Zelle, Venmo, or credit cards.
 

FOR THE COURT
Richard Jones
Clerk, United States Bankruptcy Court