The Wood Buffalo RCMP are advising residents of a reoccurring phone scam that tells victims they’ll be arrested if they don’t pay owed money to the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA).
Suspects contact potential victims by phone and use high pressure tactics such as threatening the victim that they’ll be arrested if they do not pay an amount of money immediately. Suspects also leave messages to call them back at a non-government number claiming to be from the CRA.
If you receive a call from someone claiming you owe money, get as much information from them as possible, do not provide any of your information, and tell them you will call them back.
You’re also advised not to trust any contact information from the caller and to verify who they say they are from a legitimate website and to never share any of your personal information. Caution is also advised when opening links in ant emails as some criminals may be using a technique known as phishing to steal your personal information.
RCMP will not make any arrests for CRA fines and the CRA will not request payments by prepaid credit cards, or iTunes gift cards, these methods are used by the suspect callers to hide their activities from police.
If you believe you may be the victim of fraud or have given personal or financial information unwittingly, contact the Wood Buffalo RCMP at 780-788-4040.
