Residents in Solon have been on high alert after the city reported an email scam targeting individuals who have sought assistance from the Solon Planning Commission. According to a public notice from the city, scammers have been impersonating the "City of Solon Planning Department" via email, attempting to extract additional fees from applicants through requests that seem official but are, in fact, fraudulent.
The scam involved cybercriminals sending follow-up emails from an address not conforming to the standard city correspondence, in this case, bearing the domain @usa.com. The City of Solon's actual domain is @solonohio.org, which could serve as an immediate red flag to those familiar with the city's email format. No known victims have complied with the scammer's requests, thanks in part to vigilant citizens who called back the Planning Commission at a trusted number to verify the request. The city highlighted that "The email correspondence was actually fraudulent. The scammer’s display name used in the email read," City of Solon Planning Department. "This information was faked, and was easily falsified."
Criminals have leveraged public records on the city's website to pinpoint potential scam targets. The City of Solon is now considering changes to the information that is made public, seeking to strike a careful balance between adhering to Ohio public records law and maintaining individual privacy. The city underlined the importance of securing citizens' personal information in its notice. It acknowledged the need to possibly revise content posted online, stating through the City of Solon, "We are researching what information we can remove from our planning application and agenda packets that is not necessary for public posting on our website".
To help residents prevent falling prey to such deceptive tactics, the city has recommended always double-checking the sender's email address and looking for the official domain. If uncertainty arises, the advised course of action is to contact the Planning Commission directly at the main City Hall number. The City of Solon reaffirms the individual's role in cybersecurity, emphasizing awareness and caution over personal information handling. "At the City we take your personal information that you entrust us with very seriously, so we are looking at a way to secure your email address and phone number so that it cannot be used in this way in the future," the City of Solon explained.
