FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Monday, March 4, 2024

Contact: Tony Mangan, Communications Director, 605-773-6878

PIERRE, S.D. – South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley is urging South Dakota consumers to take time, especially during this week’s National Consumer Protection Week observance, to safeguard their personal and financial information.

National Consumer Protection is today (Monday) through Saturday. Government agencies, businesses and organizations will encourage the public to protect themselves from potential scams.

“The Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division received more than 64,000 calls, inquiries, and complaints in 2023 from consumers who reported they had been a victim of a scam,” said Attorney General Jackley. “While many of the scams are ones that have been used for years, scammers are becoming more adept at using social media to intimidate consumers, regardless of their age, in providing personal information.”

Other consumer protection tips are:

*** Do not give into high pressured sales tactics.

*** Never accept items that have been mailed to you that you did not order.

*** Always get any repair work, construction orders and other types of contracts in writing with expected cost estimates and deadlines.

*** Hang up on robocalls.

*** Be cautious about free trial offers.

*** Do not deposit a check and then wire money.

*** Talk to someone you can trust before you provide money or personal information to someone who contacts you.

Consumers who believe they may have been a victim of any type of scam should contact the Attorney General’s Office’s Consumer Protection Division at 1-800-300-1986 or at https://consumer.sd.gov/.