Nearby councils are urging residents to remain vigilant after fresh cases of impostors posing as council workers arose in the area. Coolamon Shire Mayor David McCann raised the issue last week, highlighting reports of people approaching properties across the Coolamon Shire claiming to be council workers. Temora Shire Mayor Rick Firman said there had been no local instances of impostors falsely pretending to be council workers in the Temora Shire recently. Councillor Firman said Temora Shire Council had already experienced people falsely claiming to be associated with the council some time ago and had acted quickly to warn the community and police. “We experienced something similar last year," Cr Firman said. “Council obviously brought that scam to the attention of our shire community and of course, the Police. “The General Manager, Melissa Boxall and I will certainly be keeping our eyes and ears open.” In some cases, impostors told landowners roadworks were about to start in the area and offered their road sealing services. The scam is similar to the long-running road sealing scam, where fraudsters pose as tradies and offer to resurface bitumen driveways and car parks at seemingly low prices. Local residents are being warned to treat any unsolicited approach from someone claiming to represent the council with caution. Councillor McCann sent out a reminder to the community to refuse to accept any work offer without first establishing credentials, as the council does not search for private work. Cr Firman said councils also continued to face online scams, with fraudsters attempting to impersonate elected representatives. “We have email scams too - several were pretending to be other councillors, including myself,” he said. “We have cybersecurity procedures in place, which is most important to the council.” Both mayors are encouraging residents to verify the identity of anyone claiming to represent their local council before agreeing to any work or providing personal information.
