Scammers are targeting animal lovers with photos of lost, hurt pets

MASON - A new breed of scammers are targeting animal lovers by gauging their interest in how they react to pictures of lost and injured animals, Ingham County Animal Control officials said Monday.

The scammers post pictures of forlorn dogs to determine the viewers’ vulnerability to future scams, officials said. Sharing these suspicious posts makes the social media user a target for future scams.

“Scammers use this technique to identify people who may be vulnerable to other scam methods,” agency officials said in their notice. “Scammers are looking for people who like or share without checking to see if it’s true.

“Once someone shares the post, they may be at an increased risk of being a target for future scams.”

Officials advise social media users to look for these red flags: turned off comments, post originators without many friends or followers, lack of information about where the animal or animals were found and odd places where the posts are appearing.

Officials advised people who find lost animals to take them to a shelter or veterinary clinic that can scan for a microchip, file a report with an animal control agency, post a picture in a lost/found social media group with details about where the animal was found or post fliers near where the animal was found.

To report your lost pet, visit www.ac.ingham.org fill out a lost pet report, and email the report along with a photo of your pet to lostpets@ingham.org.

For more information on Ingham County Animal Control and Shelter, or to report a lost or found animal, contact the shelter at 517-676-8370, visit the ICACS website at www.ac.ingham.org, or visit the shelter at 600 Buhl St.

-Staff report

This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Scammers are targeting animal lovers with photos of lost, hurt pets