News

Alexandria warns against scammers impersonating city officials to solicit payments

By James Cullum
Money (staff photo by James Cullum)

Alexandria is warning residents against scammers impersonating city officials and asking for payments for outstanding fees.

The city issued a security alert on its website to permit applicants and property owners, although no scams have been reported within the city. Ebony Fleming, the city’s communications director, said the FBI sent out an initial alert and that the city’s warning is a precautionary measure.

“It’s important to clarify that, should anyone become a victim of this scam, City of Alexandria internal systems remain unaffected as the fraudulent activity operates outside our infrastructure,” Fleming told ALXnow. “As such, our most effective defense is proactive communication and raising public awareness. By launching this targeted information campaign, we aim to empower residents to recognize and avoid these threats.”

The city said criminals could use publicly available permit information to send “highly realistic emails” and impersonate city officials to collect outstanding fees via mobile payment applications, wire transfers and cryptocurrency — none of which the city accepts.

The city asks residents who received a fraudulent email to report it to Alex311 by submitting a ticket or calling 703-746-4311.

There have been a number of other recent scams documented in Alexandria. In those cases, scammers pretending to work with the Alexandria Sheriff’s Office called the victims and told them that they needed to pay fines. In response to those cases, the Sheriff’s Office said it will never call anyone to collect money.

Alexandria says residents and business owners can protect themselves from scams by:

  • Checking the Domain: Official City of Alexandria emails will only come from @alexandriava.gov. Be wary of addresses like “@usa.com” or slightly misspelled versions of the @alexandria.gov domain
  • Verify Payment Methods: The City does not accept permit payments via wire transfer, P2P apps (Venmo, CashApp, Zelle), or cryptocurrency
  • Confirm the Request: If you receive an unexpected invoice, do not reply to the email. Instead, call the Department office directly to verify any balance due. For permits related to Planning & Zoning, call 703-746-4666; For permits related to Transportation & Environmental Services, call 703-746-4035 and for permits related to Code Administration, call 703-746-4200

About the Author

  • Reporter James Cullum has spent nearly 20 years covering Northern Virginia. He began working with ALXnow in 2020, and has covered every story under the sun for the publication, from investigative stories to features and photo galleries. His work includes coverage of national and international situations, as well as from the White House, Capitol, Pentagon, Supreme Court and State Department. He's covered protests and riots throughout the U.S. (including the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol), in addition to earthquake-ridden Haiti, Western Sahara in North Africa and war-torn South Sudan. He has photographed presidents and other world leaders, celebrities and famous musicians, and excels under pressure.