Mom called a little shaken. “Kim, a man just called and said he’s from the electric company. He says I’m past due and if I don’t pay in the next hour, they’ll shut off my power today. He wants me to pay with a gift card from the drugstore.”
Mom, that’s a scam — hang up. The electric company does not call and threaten to cut your power in an hour, and no real utility is ever paid with a gift card.
These calls spike in the heat of summer and the cold of winter, exactly when losing power feels scariest. That fear is the whole con.
The caller claims to be from the electric, gas, or water company. You’re “overdue,” and disconnection is “scheduled for today” unless you pay right now — by gift card, Zelle, wire, or a “special” payment line they give you. It feels urgent and official, sometimes with a fake number on your caller ID (scammers can fake that easily).
But real utilities don’t work this way. They send written notices, they give you weeks and options, and they never demand a gift card. Any time a “bill” must be paid immediately with a gift card, it’s a scam — every single time. The fix: hang up. If you’re worried about your account, call the utility yourself using the number on a real paper bill or their official website — not the number the caller gave you.
Kim’s 3 Rules
1. Utilities send written notices and never threaten to cut your service within the hour.
2. No real utility is ever paid with a gift card, Zelle, or a wire. That demand alone proves it’s a scam.
3. Hang up and call your utility back on the number from a real bill — never a number the caller gave you.
If it already happened
If you bought a gift card and read off the numbers, call the gift-card company’s fraud line right away (on the back of the card) — if you’re quick they can sometimes freeze it. Keep the card and receipt. Report it at ReportFraud.ftc.gov, and call your real utility to confirm your account is fine. Then tell a family member.
Mom hung up, called her electric company’s real number, and learned her account was paid in full. “The nerve of them,” she said. Then she asked me to remind her cousin, who lives alone too.
Kim spent 30 years in computer security and now helps her 80-year-old mom — and you — stay safe online. Got a strange email, text, or call? Ask Kim first.
💡 Have a question for Kim? Use “Questions from readers” just above — Kim answers within the hour. Comments here are for sharing with other members (but Kim reads them too).
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