What are Anoka County Area Codes?
Anoka County area codes identify the designated Numbering Plan Areas (NPAs) in different parts of the county. Area codes are the strings of three-digit codes at the beginning of local phone numbers in American. They were created by the North American Numbering Plan (NANP). Area codes in Minnesota, including Anoka County, are maintained and implemented by the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission (PUC).
Four area codes currently serve the entire Anoka County. These are:
Area Code 651
Area code 651 is a Minnesota telephone area code and a split of the 612 NPA. Put to service in 1998, area code 651 covers Anoka County and parts of a few other counties in Minnesota. Lino Lakes and Centerville are cities within the 651 NPA in Anoka County.
Area Code 763
Split from the 612 NPA in 2000, area code 763 serves Anoka County and some other counties in Minnesota. The major cities and communities under area code 763 include Anoka, Ramsey, Blaine, Andover, and Lino Lakes. Others are Columbia Heights, Lexington, Circle Pines, Spring Lake Park, and Fridley.
What are the Best Cell Phone Plans in Anoka County?
Landline phones are increasingly disappearing from the many households in Minnesota. As of 2018, only 4.4% of the adult population in the state still used landline phones for telephony services. That is a long haul from the estimated 56.2% of them that already adopted wireless-only telecommunication services. More than half of the total children population also used cell phones. A 2018 CDC survey published this data, and this trend showed the state of telecommunications in Anoka County.
Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) technology offers Anoka County residents an alternative and a cost-effective means of telephony. VoIP transmits voice and video calls over broadband internet connections and supports online real-time communication between users, including holding virtual meetings across separate locations. It provides many features that are lacking in regular telephony services. Users can enjoy some features that come at extra charges on traditional communication services for free on VoIP. Many Anoka County businesses have adopted VoIP and are benefiting from its numerous improvements over regular telephone services.
All the major phone carriers provide network services in Anoka County. T-Mobile has the best coverage of %100 in the City of Anoka, while Verizon spreads over 92% of the city. AT&T provides a 70% cover, and Sprint extends to 64% of Anoka.
What are Anoka County Phone Scams?
Anoka County phone scams are fraudulent acts perpetrated using telephone services. The primary aim of phone scams is to obtain confidential information and money from residents. Conducting suspicious phone number lookups using phone search applications can identify phone numbers used to perpetrate phone scams in Anoka County. Victims of phone scams in Anoka County can file their complaints with the relevant government agencies. Most of these agencies also provide residents with information to help them avoid falling victims to phone scams. They include:
- Local law enforcement agencies
- Federal Trade Commission (FTC)
- Federal Communication Commission (FCC)
- The Office of Minnesota Attorney General (AG)
Some common phone scams in Anoka County are:
What are Delinquent Tax Collector Scams?
The Internal Revenue Services (IRS) warns residents to beware of persons who identify as debt collectors representing the IRS. Typically, the IRS has some private establishments tasked with collecting delinquent federal taxes from obstinate debtors. In this scam, the callers claim to be with one of such firms and inform their targets of the need to pay their overdue taxes immediately. They always sound unfriendly during the call and threaten their marks with arrests, jail, and sometimes deportation. If you receive such a call, run the caller's phone number through a reverse phone lookup application to ascertain the caller's sincerity. These phone scammers favor payment by prepaid cards and wire transfers. The IRS or appointed debt collection firms do not accept payment via these channels and will not threaten taxpayers over the phone.
Taxpayers should know that no private firms engaged by the IRS for debt collection operate in this manner. Typically, the IRS will send two notices to a taxpayer before transferring their account to a debt collection agency. The first letter will notify the taxpayer of the debt transfer, while the second notice will introduce the collection agency to such taxpayer. Persons who fall victim to debt collector scams in Anoka County should file reports online with the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA).
What are Tech-Support Scams?
The primary targets for tech support scams in Anoka County are computer users. The fraudsters will call their marks and pretend to be technical representatives of familiar tech companies such as Apple and Microsoft. Typically, the callers may claim that they identified some viruses on their targets' computer systems while conducting their regular checks. They will advise computer owners to grant them remote access urgently to fix the issues or risk losing the essential files on their PCs.
It is important to state that tech companies will never call you and request remote access to your computer. Note that providing remote access to unknown callers who claim to work for your computer company grants them access to obtain confidential information saved on your PC. In another variation, once the scammers gain access to PCs, they will install malware on their victims’ computers. Such malware will adversely affect their victims' computer operations. This is a ploy by the fraudsters to sell supposed solutions, thereby cashing out on the victims. They typically request payment for their services by wire transfers or gift cards. Never pay for any supposed help rendered over the phone via these means, especially when you did not solicit it. When you get this type of call, hang up and call your computer company on their official numbers to verify the caller's claim. Applications that offer reverse phone lookup free services can help retrieve identifying information on the caller.
What are Jury Duty Scams?
In jury duty scams, fraudsters pose as employees of the Anoka County Sheriff's Office and the County Police Departments to extort unsuspecting residents. They typically use the names and badge numbers of legitimate deputies and officers to fool their targets, claiming they missed jury duty. The callers will warn that bench warrants were issued for targets' arrest and that the arrest can be canceled by paying fines. Jury duty scammers favor unusual payment methods such as wire transfers, cryptocurrencies, and reloadable cards. Some even arrange meetings at courthouses for cash payment. In other instances, these fraudsters may request their marks to confirm some personal information such as social security numbers and date of birth for supposed verifications. Phone scammers typically use any information obtained from their victims for identity theft.
The ACSO or any of the Police Departments serving communities in Anoka County do not solicit money or information over the phone. In Minnesota, Law enforcement will never contact you to pay a fine for missing jury service or avoid arrest. If you receive such a call, do a reverse phone number lookup on the caller's phone number to ascertain the caller is a law enforcement officer. Never send money to anyone over the phone, especially if you did not start such a call.
What are Social Security Scams?
A reverse phone number lookup application can help you determine if a phone call is from the Social Security Administration (SSA) or law enforcement. There are many twists to social security scams in Anoka County. In one variation, the callers will contact residents and inform them that the SSA is investigating their Social Security Numbers (SSNs) for purported fraudulent activities. The callers, pretending to be federal agents, will say that their targets' SSNs were compromised, and as such, their accounts have been suspended. The scammers will offer to ensure that the marks do not get implicated in the ongoing investigation and promise to issue new SSNs to them. To help, however, such targets must either withdraw all their savings and wire them or purchase multiple gift cards. They may also ask their targets to share some confidential information. The scammers will request their targets to share such gift card details with them over the phone. They will promise to issue checks in an equivalent amount to the money received from their victims once their new SSNs are assigned to them.
If you are contacted with this type of claim or are a victim of a social security scam in Anoka County, call the OIG on 1 (800) 269-0271 to report the incident. Anoka County residents must know that SSA employees or federal agents will not solicit gift cards or personal identifying information over the phone. They should also understand that the SSA does not randomly issue new SSNs for frivolous reasons.
What are Robocalls and Spam Calls?
Robocalls are telephone calls that deliver automated messages to auto-dialed mass phone numbers. They were developed for legitimate use until phone scammers started using them for malicious purposes. Telemarketers, political campaign organizations, and government agencies in Anoka County make public service announcements using robocalls with little human effort. Phone scammers in the county have adopted robocalls in their scam schemes to extort naive residents. Spoofed robocalls allow phone scammers to contact their targets anonymously, and this is why tracking them is challenging. Robocalls are a type of spam call. Spam calls are irrelevant calls sent to a mass audience who have not expressed interest in such calls. The FTC provides tips for blocking unwanted calls on its website. You can identify robocall numbers by using applications that offer phone number lookup free services.
The best ways to deal with robocalls and avoid falling prey to scams perpetrated by them in Anoka County include:
- Report incidents of illegal robocalls to the FTC online or call 1 (888) 382-1222.
- Add your phone number to the National Do Not Call Registry developed by the FTC for persons who wish to avoid robocall inundation. Once registered on this list for 31 days, your phone number will be restricted from receiving legitimate unsolicited calls, hence notifying you of spam calls.
- If you answer a phone call and hear an automated response, hang up immediately. Disregard any instructions to press some numbers to unsubscribe to future contacts. If you respond to such instructions, the callers will confirm that your number is active and target you for more robocalls and phone scams.
- Use the call-blocking features on your phone and those provided by your network service provider to identify and block spam calls.
How Can You Spot and Report Anoka County Phone Scams?
Anyone in Anoka County can be targeted for phone scams. Hence residents must remain observant and be able to spot them. Online services that allow suspicious phone number lookup can provide answers to questions like “who is this number registered to?” and “who called?”. Most phone scammers usually modify old tricks, so having information about their ploys can help spot phone scams and avoid identity or financial loss. Common signs of phone scams in Anoka County include:
- The callers make an effort to dissuade you from verifying their claims from other persons or are reluctant to answer your questions when you attempt to query their claims.
- The callers claim to be representatives of legitimate businesses and request personal and financial information. No legitimate entity will solicit customer information via random phone calls.
- The callers claim to be with the government and attempt to coerce payments or information from you by threatening to arrest or put you in jail. Legitimate employees of any government agency will not do such.
- Unknown callers present overly juicy offers that require little or no action on your part, except that you must urgently make some financial commitments to them to benefit from an alleged investment.
- The callers demand that you pay bogus debts you do not owe or know nothing about and insist that you make payments via questionable channels. Phone scammers favor payment methods such as gift cards, wire transfers, and cryptocurrencies because payments made through them are hard to track or reverse.
Anoka County residents who are victims of phone scams can report such cases to the following government agencies:
Anoka County Sheriff's Office - The ACSO is the primary law enforcement agency in Anoka County and investigates reported phone scams incidents. Victims of phone scams can report them to the ACSO in person at the Anoka County Sheriff’s Office, 13301 Hanson Boulevard NW, Andover, MN 55304. Alternatively, they can contact the office at (763) 324-5000 or by email.
The Office of Minnesota Attorney General - The AG provides information on phone scams and other fraudulent acts to prevent residents from falling victims. To report a phone scam to the AG, complete the Fraud Report Form and mail it to the Office of Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, 445 Minnesota Street, Suite 1400, St. Paul, MN 55101.
Federal Trade Commission - The FTC protects consumers from deceptive and unfair practices. It developed the National Do Not Call Registry to protect consumers from unsolicited calls. You can report cases of illegal robocalls and other phone scams to the FTC online or by calling 1 (888) 382-1222.