Scammers are targeting social media users searching for their missing pets.

The scammers find who to target by looking for Facebook or other social media posts about lost pets and then sending text messages to the owners.

In the messages, scammers claim they have found the animal, but want verification from the owner by using a code from Facebook.

Experts say the code is actually a password recovery code. If you share that code with anyone, they will be able to access your account and lock you out of it.

"What's happening is their account has now been taken over by a scammer and they're holding their life online for ransom," says Adam Schwam, of Sandwire Technology Group. "An unsuspecting person would easily get scammed."

Those who have been contacted by the scammers and are searching for their pets say it's heartbreaking that someone would try to take advantage of them in their time of need.

"We would get these text messages because your heart kind of drops every time you get one and you say, 'Wait, maybe this is somebody who has our dog,'" says Cristina Teehan. "And obviously you'd pay anything to get her back, so in the back of your mind, you're like, 'Wait, maybe they do have our dog.'"

Teehan's dog Coco escaped from her Williston Park home in August.

Since then, she has been contacted by scammers - one even falsely claimed to be an animal rescuer who was in touch with News 12 about featuring the dog on the news for a $1,000 fee.

News 12 would never charge someone money to be featured in a story. Scammers likely used Photoshop to fake a message from a News 12 social media account.

There are some ways to identify if certain messages are scams.

If someone asks for a verification code, it's an immediate red flag.

Many of the scammers also operate from outside the country so excessive spelling or grammatic errors could also be a sign that it's a scam.