Scammers are impersonating Atlantic Beach city staff in emails that demand wire transfers for fake permit fees, the city and police department warned Wednesday, Oct. 21.

The fraudulent messages target residents, property owners, contractors and businesses with active permit or zoning applications. They request payment for supposed permit, zoning, variance or application approval fees and threaten to delay a project or public hearing unless money is sent right away, according to the city's alert.

What makes the scam convincing: the emails often include the correct property address, permit number and meeting dates pulled from publicly available records. Scammers may also copy city logos and use names of real government employees to create professional-looking invoices.

In one recently reported case, a scam email claimed the recipient owed an "Application Review and Approval Fee" before an application could move forward. That message demanded an immediate wire transfer with a 24-hour deadline, threatened delays in hearing scheduling and agenda placement, insisted on email-only communication and used an @usa.com email address.

Legitimate city staff email addresses end in @coab.us. The city does not request payments by wire transfer.

How to verify a suspicious email:

  • Call the city directly at (904) 247-5800 to confirm any invoice or fee. Do not use phone numbers from the suspicious message.
  • Visit coab.us by typing the address into your browser. Online payments should only be made through the city's official payment page or in person at City Hall by cash or check.
  • Check the sender's full email address. An @usa.com domain is not the city's.
  • Do not reply, click links or open attachments in a suspicious message.

Already sent money?

Contact your bank immediately and ask whether the transfer can be stopped or funds recalled. File a report with the Atlantic Beach Police Department at (904) 247-5859, the non-emergency line, and submit a complaint to the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) at ic3.gov. Keep all emails, invoices and transaction records for your report.

The city urged residents to share the warning with builders, contractors, architects or attorneys handling their projects. Anyone who receives a suspicious email should preserve it and report it to the Atlantic Beach Police Department at (904) 247-5859.