Suffolk Clerk of Circuit Court Randy Carter is warning residents not to click on or respond to emails that claim to be about jury duty.

The scam emails have popped up in other parts of the state, he said.

“I haven’t seen it happen here yet, but that doesn’t mean it can’t happen,” he said. “If I can keep that from happening, I’d rather do that than try to clean it up after the fact.”

The emails claim to be from court officials regarding jury duty but really only serve to collect personal information to be used by scammers, Carter said.

“They want you to open it up so somehow or another whatever they’ve got inside will extract information from you,” Carter said. “We do nothing by email. My best advice is if you get something like that, call and let us know, but don’t open it.”

The scam also can take place by phone, according to usa.gov. Sometimes, a person pretending to be a court official will claim a warrant has been issued for your arrest because you failed to show up for jury duty. When the victim says they never received a summons, the caller asks for personal details like Social Security numbers, date of birth and credit card numbers to verify and cancel the arrest warrant.

“Protecting yourself is the key,” says a warning on the FBI’s website about such scams. “Never give out personal information when you receive an unsolicited phone call.”

To report an email or phone scam, call Suffolk police at 923-2350, extension 0.