ComEd Warns Customers Of Tech-Savvy Bill Paying Scam

CHICAGO (CBS) -- An urgent warning from the biggest utilities in the Chicago area: con artists are pretending to be their employees and are scamming customers out of hundreds of dollars.

While legitimate utility workers look for trouble in the field, one customer found it over the phone.

One woman, who asked to remain unidentified, said least two tech-savvy criminals pressured her last month to pay them with a pre-paid credit card, stealing more than $800 in a sophisticated telephone scam.

"If this could happen to me, it can happen to anyone," she said. "I feel very violated."

In a news conference on Thursday, consumer advocates and representatives of utility companies talked about the complexities of the crimes.

In Northern Illinois, ComEd said it has received 35 scam or attempted scam reports in the first four months of last year.

This year, that total exceeds 700.

Some criminals are going door-to-door impersonating real workers.

Their favorite targets included seniors and Spanish-speaking business and families.

Experts say spring is the time when this kind scam comes into bloom.

The advice for consumers: Never pay for services with anyone coming to your door or contacting you by phone.

When asked how many criminals have been prosecuted for the crime, ComEd said it wasn't aware of any.