Scammers are using a prominent St. Paul law firm to target their potential victims, the state warned Monday.

The scammers pretend to be debt collectors with Jeff Anderson & Associates, a firm known nationally for representing people who say they have been victims of sexual abuse.

Targets nationwide are contacted in a variety of ways, from phone calls and text messages to Facebook posts, according to the Minnesota Department of Commerce. The messages insist the victim has a debt due immediately, or is subject of a lawsuit related to financial fraud.

There is no debt or lawsuit, and the law firm has nothing to do with these communications, the Commerce Department said in a statement Monday. The people who received the letter are not clients of the law firm, according to Jeff Anderson.

“Somebody that received the letter called us and said, ‘I got this letter from your firm.’ We said, ‘What letter?’ Then they sent it to us and we saw what it was. It’s a phony scam. Some sort of illegal collection letter. It’s just awful. So we got a copy and as soon as we did, we turned it over (to law enforcement),” he said.

People who have contacted his office are being told about the scam and told to contact authorities.

Investigators are looking into the latest scam. Earlier this fall, the agency got complaints about another fake debt collection scam that appeared to be from Advance America Cash Advance or Cash Advance Inc. The company, which offers short-term loans, said it was not them.

The Department of Commerce offered the following tips to avoid being victimized by fake debt collectors:

— Be suspicious when someone asks you to wire money or load a rechargeable money card to pay a debt.

— Ask for caller’s name, company, street address and phone number. If they refuse, the call is not legitimate.

— Research and verify contact information. If given a specific website, it could be fake. Instead, search for it on Google and see if it is legitimate.

— Do not reply to emails, texts or Facebook postings from debt collectors. Legitimate debt collectors do not contact people that way.

— Ask for written proof of the debt, including a written “validation notice” required by federal law. The notice must include the amount of the debt, the name of the creditor and information about the consumer’s rights under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.

— Do not provide or confirm Social Security, bank, credit card or other personal information. Fake collectors are also in the identity theft business.

— Report suspected fraud with the Federal Trade Commission at www.ftc.gov or 877-382-4357. You should also contact the Minnesota Commerce Department’s Consumer Services Center at consumer.protection@state.mn.us, 651-539-1600 or 800-657-3602.