Scam Alert: Ames Police Warn of a Hotel Credit Card Theft

The Ames Police Department said Monday that they have learned that scammers are trying to steal credit card information from hotel guests.

Information on the scam follows below:

In the scam, guests receive a call from someone claiming to be an employee of the hotel telling them the computer system has crashed and the scammer needs the guest’s credit card information. In some cases, a partial refund is offered for the inconvenience.

Police said to never give out credit card information over the phone when the caller cannot be identified. Any guests who receive this kind of call while staying in a hotel should go to the front desk instead, the release said.

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