Kingston police are warning the public of a recent scam. Fake taxi/Uber scams have recently been reported in the area and are likely to continue as students return for the upcoming school year.
Police say this type of crime is generally carried out by scammers utilizing vehicles which look similar to those used by legitimate taxi companies. In many cases, they will use stolen or fake taxi lights and Ontario licence plates.
Often working in pairs, one scammer will pose as the driver while the another pretends to be a passenger. The fake passenger will approach a potential victim claiming to need help as the taxi will not accept cash for a low value fare. The fake passenger asks the victim to pay for the fare using their own bank card in exchange for the cash. However, when the victim agrees to pay the small fare, their bank card is inserted into a modified point-of-sale terminal which captures the PIN number of that card.
The fake passenger then repays the victim in cash, while at the same time swapping the victim’s bank card with either a fake one or that from another victim whose account was already depleted. The scammers then use the stolen card to max out the victim’s bank accounts at local ATM machines and convenience stores. Victims usually do not realize their cards have been switched until several hours later.
Individuals who believe they have been impacted or targeted by this type of scam are encouraged to file a police report either by calling 613-549-4660 ext. 01 or by utilizing our online reporting tool which can be found at www.kingstonpolice.ca.
Anyone with information in relation to these incidents can also contact D/Cst. Stefan Walker at swalker@kingstonpolice.ca.
