South Dakota Court Scams

Protect Yourself Against Court Scams

Watch out for scam phone calls, texts or emails that claim you owe money or face arrest because you missed jury duty, a court appearance or paying a traffic ticket. 

People making these calls or sending these messages often pretend to be court officials or law enforcement officers. They demand money or personal information. Sometimes, they tell you that you owe money for missing jury duty or failing to pay a traffic ticket. These messages are scams. 

South Dakota courts and law enforcement will NEVER: 

• Threaten a person or demand money over the phone or in a text message for failing to appear for jury duty or for not paying a traffic ticket. 
• Require immediate payment via cryptocurrency, like Bitcoin, or apps such as PayPal or Venmo. 
• Ask someone to provide sensitive information over the phone or in a text or email. 

How to Protect Yourself:
If you get a phone call or text message that demands information or money:

• Do not provide the information or payment they ask for.
• Do not reply directly to the text or email, click on any links or open any attachments. Scammers often make the messages look like they are coming from a real court or law enforcement agency.
• Hang up the phone and do not engage with the caller.
• Reach out directly to your local clerk of courts office or law enforcement agency to see if the call or message was real.

Report a Scam:

• Contact your local law enforcement.
• Report the scam to the South Dakota Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division at 1-800-300-1986 or https://consumer.sd.gov. 
• Report scams and suspicious communications to the Federal Trade Commission.
• Report identity theft and learn what to do if your identity is stolen on the Federal Trade Commission's website IdentityTheft.gov.