Will County Issues Warning About Imposter Inspectors Scamming Restaurants

The Will County Health Department's Division of Environmental Health has issued a warning about a scam aimed at restaurants and other food service businesses.

The scammers will contact restaurateurs, claiming to be health inspectors or other government officials. Once a fake identity has been established, business owners are informed about a "new inspection procedure."

There is no new inspection procedure, and the scammer is really trying to set up an account linking the restaurant with a national online auction service. If an account is successfully established, the verification information can be used in conjunction with other fraudulent schemes.

The scammer provides a numeric code and instructs the restaurant operator to provide the confirmation code when prompted during an automated phone call or a scheduled food service inspection. The purpose of the code is to get the business owner to provide false verification that can then be used for other fraudulent purposes.

Will County health inspections are unannounced and are never scheduled in advance. Any "government official" who asks food service operators to use a code in conjunction with an automated call system, or an inspector, is part of a fraud scheme.

Will County Environmental Health personnel are required to carry proper photo identification. Restaurateurs should ask for proper photo identification during an inspection.

There are more than 2,600 food service establishments in Will County. 

For more information, call 815-727-8490.