Cascade County officials said Oct. 5 that impersonation scams are targeting county residents.
The county issued a cybersecurity warning about a rise in impersonation scams that misuse legally posted public information from official government websites.
Cybercriminals are scraping public records — including meeting agendas, minutes and contact details — to impersonate elected officials or county staff, according to the county.
The scams are designed to trick the public into sharing sensitive information, transferring money or engaging in fraudulent activities under the false belief they are communicating with a trusted government official.
How these scams work, according to Cascade County officials:
- threat actors gather names, titles and writing styles from public postings
- they may reach out via email, phone, or social media, pretending to be a commissioner, clerk or other official
- victims are often asked to provide personal information, send money or take urgent action
Cascade County does not request payment, banking information or personal details via email or text, according to an alert from the county.
Official communications come from email addresses ending in @cascadecountymt.gov.
Public documents are shared in compliance with Montana transparency laws and do not imply direct outreach or solicitation.
County officials recommend verifying the source of information if contacted, not clicking on suspicious links or downloading unexpected attachments.
Incidents should be reported to the Cascade County Sheriff’s Office or the county’s technology department at 406-454-6795 or infosec@cascadecountymt.gov.
