Nearly one in five Americans have been targeted with this 1 type of scam — and weather plays a role. Here is how not to fall for it in 2026

Even if you are behind on your bills, a utility provider wouldn’t demand payment in this way.

Utility scams aren’t new, but they’re becoming more common — and there are a few variations circulating. Scammers also tend to target their victims during winter months or bad weather, when the thought of losing power or water is more likely to cause panic (and prompt action).

“We are hearing of increases in impersonation scams involving utility providers,” Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday said in a recent press release. He warns Pennsylvanians to beware of fake utility websites that show up on Google searches (1).

These fake websites direct consumers to scammers posing as customer service reps, who use scare tactics and a sense of urgency to pressurize the situation and get prospective victims to hand over money or personal information.

But this isn’t limited to Pennsylvania.

Across the country, consumers report receiving calls, texts, emails and even in-person visits demanding immediate payment for supposedly overdue utility balances.

Here’s what you need to know to protect yourself.

Utility scams heat up in wintertime

Aside from fake websites, utility imposters might contact potential victims by phone, text or email with fake warnings that their heat is about to get shut off. In some cases, scammers might even show up at your doorstep, claiming to be from your local utility.

A survey by Utilities Now, a consumer protection resource, found that nearly one in five (18%) Americans have been targeted by a utility scam in the past year. About one in three noticed more utility scam attempts “during major natural disasters or extreme weather events” (2).

About half (52%) were contacted by phone, while 47% were contacted by email, 40% by text and 14% by an in-person visit (traditional mail accounted to just 2%).

Electricity was the most targeted utility at 62%, followed by internet services (41%), gas (16%) and water (9%). Of those targeted, 33% said they lost money (2).

Losses range from a few hundred dollars to several thousand. WTAQ in Wisconsin reported that some victims who recently fell for a utility scam lost more than $10,000 (3).

Utility imposters might also ramp up their efforts during major storms or power outages.

On Jan. 26, for example, Duke Energy — which serves more than 8 million electric customers across six states in the Southeast and Midwest — issued an alert after scam messages started circulating that claimed to provide outage schedules of maps (4).

BBB Eastern Carolinas issued an alert warning consumers to “be wary of links contained in text messages claiming to have a schedule and map of rolling outages” (5).

How to protect yourself from utility imposters

Knowing the red flags — and how legitimate utilities operate — can stop a scam before money changes hands. For example, familiarize yourself with your utility provider’s payment methods and procedures.

If someone leaves you a voicemail with a call-back number, don’t call them back on that line. And if someone sends you a text, don’t reply to it — and don’t click on any links in the message.

“Scammers hope their message will cause you to feel so scared or excited you’ll click the link without thinking,” according to the BBB. “Some of these links could download malware onto your device. Others may lead you to lookalike websites where scammers hope to harvest your personal information, login ID and passwords” (6).

To protect yourself from fake websites, avoid generic searches like “utility phone number” and don’t click on online advertisements for utility providers.

To determine if a website is legitimate, check the URL to see if it uses https:// and look for misspellings or unusual domains (such as .net instead of .com). You can also use tools like Google’s Safe Browsing tool.