The scam is called "Jury Duty".

This scam uses scare tactics to get credit card and other personal information out of victims. We’re always trying to figure out new “how to get out of jury duty” excuses, but sometimes we simply have missed the court notice. This is where the jury duty scam comes into play.

In this scam, the con artist calls the victim claiming to be a representative from the local court in their area. They tell the victim that because they failed to show up for a scheduled jury duty an arrest warrant has been issued in their name. The victim replies by saying that they never received a jury duty notice.

The scammer then says that, in order to clear up the matter, they need to verify some information. The scammer will go on to ask for personal information including the victim’s address, social security number, birth date, and credit card numbers. The unknowing victim, who is frazzled and worried about the arrest warrant, complies and gives the caller the information, becoming subject to identity theft and credit card fraud.