The City of New Orleans is alerting people to an on-going fraud scheme in which fraudulent emails claiming to be from City planning, zoning, and permitting departments and requesting payment for application renewals, permit reviews, or approvals. These messages are part of a nationwide scam in which individuals impersonate government agencies and attempt to collect illegitimate fees from residents and businesses.

For more information on the scheme and what you should do if you think you have been targeted, please read the City’s press release which is appended below.

Alert: Fraud Scheme Targeting Residents of the New Orleans

The City of New Orleans has received citizen reports of fraudulent emails claiming to be from City planning, zoning, and permitting departments and requesting payment for application renewals, permit reviews, or approvals.

These messages are part of a nationwide scam in which individuals impersonate government agencies and attempt to collect illegitimate fees from residents and businesses. In many cases, these messages urge recipients to submit payment by email or wire transfer and may come from unofficial email addresses. Residents are reminded that City departments will not request payments through unsolicited emails, third-party email domains, or unofficial correspondence.

Common Warning Signs

• Requests for payment by email, wire transfer, gift cards, or cryptocurrency
• Urgent language requiring immediate action
• Messages from unofficial email domains (such as “@usa.com”)
• Requests to reply directly for payment instructions
• Messages claiming to be from City of New Orleans departments that do not originate from an @nola.gov email address
• Attachments or links requesting personal or financial information

What Residents Should Do

If you receive a suspicious message:

• Do not send payment
• Do not respond to the sender
• Do not click on links or open attachments

Residents who believe they have been targeted, or a victim of this nationwide scam are encouraged to report the incident to:Local law enforcement, and The FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) at www.ic3.gov

For situational awareness and information sharing purposes, suspicious messages may also be forwarded to SecurityTeam@nola.gov.