Park County Sheriff’s Office warns public about disclosing personal info

CODY (WNE) — The Park County Sheriff’s Office is issuing a reminder to the public never to  disclose sensitive personal or financial information by phone without first verifying the legitimacy of the caller.

In recent instances, two community members reported having been scammed out of $7,600 and $2,800 apiece. 

“People need to do their homework,” said Monte McClain, the PCSO communications supervisor. “If someone calls them with something that doesn’t sound right, check it out.

“For example, if you get a phone call from someone claiming to be law enforcement, know that we do not call people who have warrants,” McClain continued. “We go arrest them as that is what the court has ordered us to do. The courts don’t use gift cards, Bitcoin or Venmo to collect bail or bonds. We don’t collect the monies at all – that is on the courts, not law enforcement.”

According to the Federal Trade Commission’s preliminary data for last year, an estimated $745 million was defrauded from Americans aged 65 and older in the first quarter of 2025.

The agency said that older adults are more susceptible to scams, including on social media, with an estimated one in five seniors having reported being victims of fraud. However, the agency stressed, most fraud goes unreported.

In a report released last month, the FTC said that it had found a “fourfold increase from 2020 to 2024, skyrocketing from about $600 million in 2020 to $2.4 billion in 2024. This increase was largely driven by reports of losses over $100,000, often to investment scams, romance scams, or impersonations.”

To report fraud to the FTC, visit reportfraud.ftc.gov.

This story was published on Jan. 21, 2026.