(Quinte News File Photo: Nicole Kleinsteuber)
Ontarians lose tens of thousands of dollars every year to phone scams related to their electricity bills – a crime that has been active in more than seven provinces and targeted thousands of businesses according to the RCMP.
For Fraud Prevention Month, Veridian Connections (“Veridian”) and other electric utilities are working together through the Electricity Distributors Association (“EDA”) to protect Ontarians by providing tips to help them deal with suspicious phone calls.
As consumer-facing utilities that deliver reliable power to their communities, they take the safety and well-being of customers and employees very seriously.
“We have noticed an increase in phone scams over the past few years and the fraudsters are getting more sophisticated, often combining new technology with age-old tricks to get people to send money or give out personal information,” explains Veridian’s Rob Scarffe, Executive Vice President, Customer Service & Information Technology.
“These phone scams continue to be a source of great frustration for our customers as well as for us. We urge everyone who receives one of these calls to hang up immediately and report it to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre.”
