The L&A County OPP wants to educate the public about a current scam that is being used to prey on victims.
The Canadian Anti-Fraud Center continues to receive reports of victims who have been contacted by fraudsters claiming to be from their financial institution, law enforcement or one of their online merchants, according to an OPP statement .
“Suspects are claiming there were suspicious charges on your credit card or online account,” the OPP said. “They claim the fees are either from an online purchase, an in-store transaction, or a transfer abroad. They then state that they need your credit card information to reverse the transaction.
The OPP revealed that numerous reports indicate that the crooks will have access to the victims’ computers to continue “the investigation”. Victims are then shown a fraudulent transaction on their online bank account.
According to the OPP, the crooks say they want the victims’ help in an ongoing “investigation” against the criminals who have stolen their money. The alleged bank investigator and / or law enforcement official say they will send victims a deposit of funds, which victims can send overseas as part of the “investigation.” It is only when the transfers are completed that the victims realize that the funds were never deposited into their account, the OPP said.
OPP L&A has offered the following warning signs and ways to protect yourself
- Bank Investigator scam calls tend to occur in the early morning hours when a victim is still sleeping or not alert.
- Financial institutions or online merchants will never ask to transfer funds to an external account for security reasons.
- Criminals use call spoofing to deceive victims. Do not assume that the phone numbers appearing on your call screen are correct.
- Never provide remote access to your computer.
- If you receive an incoming call claiming to be from your financial institution, tell the caller you will call them back. End the call and dial the number on the back of your card from another phone if possible or wait 10 minutes before making the outgoing call.
- Learn more tips here: Protect yourself against scams and fraud (antifraudcentre-centreantifraude.ca)
Anyone who suspects they have been the victim of cybercrime or fraud should report it to their local police and the Canadian Anti-Fraud Center here Report fraud and cybercrime (antifraudcentre-centreantifraude.ca) or by phone at 1-888-495-8501. If it’s not a victim, the OPP suggests reporting it to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Center anyway.
