McHenry County warns of scammers targeting people submitting zoning or permit requests

McHenry County officials are warning residents that scammers are targeting people who have submitted zoning or permit requests.

Officials said the scammers are sending fake emails that include real case details scraped from the county's online meeting streams to make their messages look legitimate.

The emails are being sent from the planning-dept-mchenrycountyil.gov@mail.com address. They tell the submitters that their permit was approved and encourage them to open an attached invoice, then email them back for wire transfer instructions.

Officials said if you get one of these scam emails, you should delete it immediately and flag it as spam. Along with the wire fraud the scammers are attempting, officials warn clicking a link or opening an attachment could expose your computer and network to malware, viruses or ransomware.

Real McHenry County government email addresses end with "@mchenrycountyil.gov" and any email that has a different domain is not real, officials said. They added that Planning & Development will never request an applicant make a wire transfer.

If you have questions or concerns about the legitimacy of an email you receive that is from the Planning & Development Department, you can verify by calling 815-334-4560 or emailing plandev@mchenrycountyil.gov.