Central Hastings OPP would like to warn residents of a scam that has recently surfaced in the area. The scammer calls and pretends to be from a financial institution or credit card company. They falsely tell the victim that their credit card and/or banking information has been compromised. In one incident the scammer claimed an unauthorized charge of $300 was made from a money transfer service on the victim’s credit card.
The scammer often creates a sense of urgency and then asks for the caller to confirm their credit card number and personal information such as SIN number. Often the calls are made late in the evening or early in the morning with the hopes of catching the potential victim off guard.
It has also been reported that the scam follows up with an unsolicited ad or email which once opened could expose your computer to the possibility of dangerous or malicious programs meant to destroy data or steal personal private information.
Central Hastings OPP is asking you to take the time to verify unsolicited contacts.
Call the company or financial institution yourself on a phone number you know to be genuine.
Do not rely on caller ID alone to authenticate a caller. Criminals spoof caller ID numbers. They may appear to be calling from a legitimate company or a local number, when they’re not even in the same country as you.
A caller who creates a sense of urgency or uses high-pressure tactics is probably a scam artist.
You work hard for your money, so work hard to protect it and remember; the scams will continue as long as the con artists continue to make money.
