Scams are not a thing of the past, the Elk Valley RCMP wants to stress.
Though Internet literacy, caution, and vigilance are rising skills to the present-day web surfer, Sgt. Will Thien of the RCMP warns that telephone, internet and mail scams continue to prey on victims to this day.
Thien notes common scams will include scammers impersonating employees from well-known companies such as Microsoft and Google, informing potential victims of issues with their computer or router, encouraging them to transfer money or personal information to them for said issues to be fixed.
Canadian Revenuge Agency imposters are also a common ploy for scammers, warning victims over e-mail that in order to avoid prosecution, payment over the Internet is necessary.
Computer viruses that infect individual’s devices can also trick people into believing an illegal site has been accessed. Payment to avoid a fine charge, legitimized by a faux police insignia, often accompanies such virus blasts.
“There are many different form of scams but [these] have been the most common and we have seen them in the Elk Valley over the past few years,” said Thien. Due to the anonymity of these heists, scams are extremely difficult and almost impossible to trace.
“The culprit [or culprits] may or may not be in Canada and chances are they are from a different country,” Thien said.
Individuals are cautioned to not engage with people in conversation, provide any personal information or funds.
Questions should be forwarded to the Elk Valley RCMP at 250-425-6533.