Beware Of Census Scams: Norwood Police

NORWOOD, MA — Census season is upon us and Norwood officials are reminding residents to be extra vigilant about possible scammers as census workers begin to collect data from households who have yet to respond.

The 2020 Census can be completed online. The Census can also be completed by mail or over the phone. Residents who have not submitted their Census will be contacted by the Census Bureau directly.

Census workers will first try to contact those who have not submitted their Census by phone. If they still don't receive a response, workers will begin going door-to-door in order to collect the data. All workers will have proper identification and can conduct the work at the front door.

Residents should be wary of any scammers posing as census workers and knocking on doors inquiring about money or personal information.

The 2020 U.S. Census Bureau will never ask for a Social Security Number, bank account or credit card numbers, or for money or donations, and will never threaten jail time for not responding to the Census. It will also never send unsolicited emails requesting participation in the Census.

The Town of Norwood warns that residents should never give personal information, money or home access to any solicitor. If a false Census is sent to you, you should not fill it out and alert local authorities immediately.

The American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) offers these recommendations to help identify if a Census or census worker is legitimate:

• Confirm that the questionnaire you’ve received is on the Census Bureau’s official list of household or business surveys.
• Contact the bureau’s National Processing Center or the regional office for your state to verify that an American Community Survey or other census communication is real.
• Check that a census mailing has a return address of Jeffersonville, Indianna, the site of the National Processing Center. If it’s from somewhere else, it’s not from the Census Bureau.
• Check the URL of any supposed Census website. Make sure it has a census.gov domain and is encrypted — look for “https://” or a lock symbol in the browser window.

"While we would like to encourage our residents to participate in the 2020 Census, we would also like to remind them to be mindful of who they give their personal information out to," General Manager Mazzucco said. "Residents should remain vigilant of those impersonating census workers. Anyone who comes to your door asking for personal information under the guise of a census worker should be reported to the police immediately."

If you see any suspicious activity, please call the Norwood Police Department at 781- 440-5100.

Anyone with questions about the 2020 United States Census may call the Secretary of the Commonwealth’s Census Division at 833-MA1-2020.