The City of Obetz is warning residents, businesses, developers, and property owners about a nationwide scam involving fraudulent planning, zoning, permit, and development-related emails.

Scammers may impersonate City staff and send realistic-looking invoices requesting immediate payment, often by wire transfer. These messages may arrive near a scheduled hearing, plan review, permit approval, or other project milestone to make the request appear legitimate.

Fraudulent messages may also include accurate property addresses, parcel numbers, business names, project descriptions, hearing dates, City logos, seals, or staff titles obtained from public records. Accurate information and official-looking documents do not prove that an email is legitimate.

Please remember:

• Official City of Obetz correspondence will come from an email address ending in @obetz.gov.
• Be suspicious of unexpected requests for payment by wire transfer.
• Do not trust an email simply because it contains correct project or property information.
• Be cautious of messages claiming an approval will be delayed unless payment is made immediately.
• Be suspicious of instructions requiring all communication to occur only through the sender’s email address.
• Do not use the phone number or email address listed in a suspicious message to verify it.

Before making any payment, contact the City of Obetz directly at 614-491-1080 or from prior trusted correspondence.

If you receive a suspicious message, do not reply, click links, open additional attachments, or send payment. Save the email and attachment and contact the City so the request can be verified. Victims may also report suspected fraud to local law enforcement and the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center at IC3.gov.