By Dennis Hanagan –
The Toronto Police Service says Canadians are scammed out of billions of dollars every year, so its website – tps.ca/fraud – offers ways to protect yourself.
If you think you’re a victim of fraud, a key step is to immediately stop making major financial decisions until your bank accounts are secured, say police.
Strong passwords, two-factor authentication and locking your credit file are simple ways to protect your accounts and credit cards. And don’t make money transactions on a public WiFi, such as at the local library or coffee shops.
Notify your financial institution and any other companies where you have an account that might have been affected. It’s also a good idea to install anti-spyware on your computer and never send personal, credit card or online banking details in an email.
Toronto police list 15 categories of scams at tps.ca/fraud, saying what to be aware of and how to protect yourself. Here are a few categories:
Business. In this scam, the fraudster sends an email to a company’s owner or finance department urgently seeking a payment or information about employees or accounts. They might also send phony bills or invoices with logos that look legitimate, hoping the person who pays invoices won’t recognize they’re fake.
Always be cautious of unsolicited emails. Create a list of reputable companies your business uses, and limit the number of staff who can pay bills.
Dating and Romance. These scammers fool victims by appealing to their romantic or compassionate side. After several email exchanges the scammer pleas for money.
Never send money or give out your financial details, and use only legitimate dating sites. Check website addresses carefully because scammers mimic real website addresses.
Ask yourself if someone you have never met would declare their love for you after a few letters or emails.
Identity theft. This happens when someone gets your bank account, credit card, driver’s licence, social insurance number or other personal information. In the wrong hands, this information can lead to financial and legal woes, even psychological problems.
When you see strange purchases on your monthly bills that you would never make, when a collection agency calls about debt you’ve never heard of or when your credit card or bank statements do not arrive – think of fraud.
If you lose a document or if it’s stolen, immediately notify the issuer and police. Never give out your bank card or credit card PIN number, and never give personal information over the phone, internet or mail unless you initiate the contact. Shred personal documents before putting them in the garbage.
Taxi. This fraud involves two scammers, one posing as a taxi driver (the taxi is fake) and the other pretends to be a passenger needing help.
The phony passenger asks you to pay the driver with your debit or credit card because the driver won’t accept cash and says they will reimburse you. (All licenced taxi companies accept cash.)
The driver then puts your card in a point-of-sale terminal that records your personal identification number (PIN), and hands you back a fake card. With that, the bogus driver and passenger are off to the bank to drain your accounts.
Never make payments for people you don’t know.
It’s also wise to make card payments using the tap method because your PIN is not required. If you do insert your card into a point-of-sale terminal, be sure to be the one who removes it.
Read more at tps.ca/fraud
