RANDOLPH — Police are alerting the community about a new scam involving threatening emails that demand bitcoin payments after victims received messages containing their personal information and photos of their homes.
The Randolph Police Department reported an increase in complaints from residents who have received emails, mostly from gmail.com accounts, that use the victims’ full names and addresses.
The emails include images that appear to be taken from online mapping applications, such as Google Maps, depicting the street or front yard of the targeted individuals.
According to the authorities, the emails have a threatening tone and demand a bitcoin payment, typically in the amount of either $1,950 or $2,000.
Scammers have included a QR code for the intended payment and falsely claim that Pegasus malware has been installed on the victim’s computer.
Police emphasized that recipients of such emails should not respond.
The recommended action is to immediately move the email to the spam folder and then delete it to avoid further risk.
The department urges anyone who receives a similar email or has questions to contact the Randolph Police Department at 781-963-1212 for assistance and support in dealing with the scam.
