OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. — The Better Business Bureau is investigating a new scare-tactic scam out of Oklahoma City, demanding money for debts people don’t owe.
About 90 individuals have been impacted in Oklahoma City in the last three months.
Claims date back to December 2023, reporting Progressive Legal Group is acting as a debt collector, sending emails and letters attempting to scare and trick people into paying off outstanding loans.
In the last two weeks, though, President and CEO of Central Oklahoma’s BBB Kitt Letcher said they had received 69 claims.
“The interesting thing about this particular scam is that the information that's provided in the letters that are being sent to people is so very personal so it has correct names, phone numbers, social security numbers, credit scores, previous employers are sometimes listed in there, family members are being named,” said Letcher. “What really created some red flags for people was that it says things in the letter like if you don't pay this outdated, lawsuit or fine or legal, whatever it is, that we will be taking you to court and we will also be calling in your family members will be subpoenaed to appear in court.”
Those who have received these claims, though, have realized there are some inconsistencies.
Some family members referenced died, and the companies Progressive Legal Group is claiming to be working for have not loaned these individuals in a number of years.
While this has been an active scam since December, it is significant that the last two weeks have seen such an increase.
Letcher said it wasn’t a slow burn but instead seemed like the scheme developed overnight.
“All of a sudden people started getting these letters, they were very, very urgent,” she said. “They were really hostile in their tone so that people felt like they were in trouble. They threatened legal action against them, and with the way the letter looks, it looks like something's already been filed in court.”
The letters are directing payment to a P.O. box, with no way for individuals to speak with someone about the claims.
As for the companies named as partnering with the group, Letcher said they have reached out, and they have no record of ever working with Progressive.
Scams like this are common for the BBB, but the level of detail is alarming to them. Letcher said they suspect they were able to purchase the personal information from a data leak and are hoping someone with a vulnerability will take the bait.
“What would be a great course of action is if they would check with the credit bureaus and make sure that nothing has been flagged on their credit report,” said Letcher. “If they wanted to take it a step further, they could actually put a freeze on their credit if they wanted to, so if any suspicious activity, somebody tried to take a loan out in their name or do any credit reports on them or do any hard contacts, it would notify that individual that that was being done.”
Letcher said the next step would be reaching out directly to the company Progressive Legal Group is allegedly working for to ask about the claim.
Anyone who receives these letters can report them through the BBB’s scam tracker, so they can continue to look at the information and increase awareness in the community.
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