(FOX40.COM) — Pacific Gas & Electric Company sent a stark warning to its California customers about a significant increase in scams.

“Scams targeting utility customers continue to increase at an alarming rate,” PG&E said in an email sent to customers on Saturday. “Scammers can be convincing and often target those who are most vulnerable. They also aim their scams at small business owners during busy customer service hours.”

With the right information, PG&E said customers can learn to detect and report “predatory scams.”

What do utility scammers do?

• Ask for payment in unconventional ways such as pre-paid debit cards, gift cards, or third-party mobile payment applications. PG&E said it will not ask for those methods to pay a bill.

• Threaten to disconnect power because of past due bills if payment is not made immediately.

• Ask for social security, credit card or PG&E account numbers, logins, and other personal information.

• Create authentic-looking 800 numbers which appear as PG&E on a phone display. If a person has doubts about a call, PG&E said they should hang up and call hang up and call
1-833-500-SCAM.

How to protect yourself

• Never purchase a prepaid card to avoid service disconnection or shutoff.

• If a person threatens immediate disconnection or shutoff of service without prior notification, hang up the phone, delete the email, or shut the door.

• Sign up for an online account at pge.com for balance information, alerts, and payment history.

• Report interactions with suspected scammers to local law enforcement.