Officials Issue Warning About Organ Donation Scam

Nashville, TN (WSMV) -- Vanderbilt University Medical Center has issued a warning about a major scam involving human organs.

Officials have received several reports about scammers posing as VUMC representatives offering cash payments for organ donations through texts and messages on social media.

"This is a phishing scam. No authorized transplant program in the U.S. would do this. Not only is this practice illegal, creating confusion around the life-saving gift of organ donation could result in someone not receiving a desperately needed organ," said a VUMC spokesperson in a statement.

Several of the messages were sent from outside the state.

If you have received one of these messages, you are asked to call the VUMC Integrity Line at 866-783-2287. The line is available 24/7.

Please note: This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2018 Cable News Network, Inc., a Time Warner Company. All rights reserved.