Alpharetta, Georgia – City officials in Alpharetta are urging caution after discovering a scam aimed at residents, business owners, and developers involved in the public hearing process. According to the city, fraudulent emails have been circulating that appear to come from legitimate municipal sources, complete with official-looking logos, staff names, and even project details pulled from publicly available records.
The emails often include invoices or requests for payment tied to permits or community development services. In some cases, recipients are instructed to send funds through wire transfers. City leaders stress that Alpharetta does not request Community Development payments through wire transfers, and legitimate city emails always come from addresses ending in @alpharetta.ga.us.
Officials say the scheme relies on deception rather than sophistication. By scanning public meeting agendas and related documents, scammers identify applicants scheduled for hearings and then contact them directly, hoping recipients will respond quickly without verifying the source. The tactic has not been isolated to Alpharetta; similar attempts have been reported by local governments across the region…