The scam involves sending fake invoices using the names of County Officials and the official Sacramento County logo, instructing recipients to wire money. Photo courtesy of Sacramento County

SACRAMENTO COUNTY, CA (MPG) - Sacramento County officials have been made aware of a fraudulent email scheme targeting both current and former planning customers.

The scam involves sending fake invoices using the names of county officials and the official Sacramento County logo, instructing recipients to wire money. The current reports of this scam utilize an email address of “planning-​[email protected].”

Customers are urged to be cautious and not respond to these emails or send any payments. Anyone who receives a suspicious email of this nature should forward it to [email protected] for review.

“Sacramento County takes this matter very seriously and we are actively working to educate our customers so that they don’t fall victim to this scam,” said Sacramento County Planning Director Todd Smith. “We urge our customers to remain vigilant and verify any financial requests directly with the county before taking action. If you’re unsure whether an invoice is official, contact us to verify.”

The Sacramento County Department of Technology is investigating the incident and will collaborate with law enforcement if necessary.

The Sacramento County Department of Finance issues planning customer invoices through the U.S. mail and does not instruct customers to wire funds as a method of payment. Payments are only accepted by mail to P.O. Box 1587, Sacramento, CA 95812, in person at county locations, and certain payments are accepted online. ​

If you have received an invoice from Sacramento County Planning and Environmental Review and would like to verify its authenticity, email [email protected] or call Planning and Environmental Review at 916-874-6141.