Authorities Warn About ‘Pastor Texting’ Scams Asking for Money

The police department in Eugene, Oregon, is warning churchgoers to beware of text messages from scammers impersonating pastors and asking for money. 

The scammers target several churches in the area. 

The scammer will text someone who is known to attend a local church, using the pastor’s name to establish trust. The text message will appear urgent, and the scammer will ask the recipient to reply quickly. Once the recipient replies, the scammer sends requests for gift cards, money transfers, credit card information, or even log-in information. 

“Please do not text back!” The Eugene Police Department urged in a statement. “If you are concerned it may be legitimate, reach out independently to a known number for that church or organization.”

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Police are also encouraging those who believe they have received a scam text to report it to the Internet Crime Complaint Center of the FBI. 

Janna Rager, community engagement specialist for the Eugene Police Department, told KEZI, “You never want to open a link within the message, because the moment you click on the link, you can actually give them access to your computer or your cell phone.”

“As a matter of fact, if you are getting any kind of, whether it be an email, text message from anyone ever asking for money, verify that it is for sure the exact [person],” Rager continued. “Not through them. Sometimes, they’ll be like, ‘If you have any questions, call us at…’ Well, they’re giving you a number that’s not the real number.”

“Do not send money to anyone. Again, a lot of these text messages are urgent. ‘Please be discreet. We don’t want to cause embarrassment in the church.’ So people do it,” she added. “There’s wonderful ways to give to your church, but don’t do it in a way that is a scam.”

On the other side of the country in Anacoco, Louisiana, authorities are issuing similar warnings. Members of First Baptist Church of Anacoco have also reported a pastor texting scam. 

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Chad King, who pastors the church, told KPLC that he was alerted to the scam when church members began reaching out about messages they received in his name.