South Bruce OPP are advising caution with regard to scams, as another $3,000 was sent to a con artist.
Police say this past week they received a report of a successful scam in the area where an online grant application turned out to be a sophisticated scam.
Police say even though Fraud Prevention Month is over, they are asking residents to continue watching out for cons and scams, as year-to-date, more than $400,000 has been lost by residents in Southern Bruce County.
“Cons and scams are attempted daily through online platforms, by phone, by letter mail, or by fax. The reality is that fraud is a multi-million-dollar enterprise that will only end when the con artists stop making money,” say police.
Police add while scammers will change tactics and come up with new schemes, there are some common tools in a con artist’s toolbox, these include:
-Spoofing scams, when it appears to be contact from a friend, legitimate company or even a branch of the government. To avoid the scam, end the call and connect with the real person, company or branch of government. If it’s an email, hover over the reply and see what email address shows up.
-Urgency, act now, limited time offer, or click now scams, when the scammer doesn’t want you to consider the offer as suspicious. To avoid the scam, time is on your side, verify before you go any further.
-Pop-up scams, when boxes appear on your computer or device screen claiming your either won a prize or your device is infected and a toll number is provided for you to call. To avoid the scam, install anti-virus, pop-up blockers, clear your cache, block cookies when possible, and don’t use public Wi-Fi, particularly for online banking.
Police add if a situation sounds too good to be true, it likely is, and you cannot win a contest you didn’t enter in the first place. Also if you have a concern about your computer, take it to a reputable repair shop, and do not give remote access to a tech that calls you out of the blue. Also gift cards are a red flag, if someone calls you and directs you to buy gift cards, hang up the phone.
Anyone interested in more information can visit the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre website here or call 1-888-495-8501.
Anyone with information on scams are asked to call the South Bruce OPP at 1-888-310-1122 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.