Canada Revenue Agency fraud scam

RCMP Alberta - RCMP have recently received reports of a telephone scam circulating where individuals posing as Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) tell the call recipient they own money to CRA and can pay with Google cards or some form of alternate gift card purchase.

PCESC warns of telephone scams

PCESC - The Pincher Creek Emergency Services Commission would like to extend a warning to all residents that there have been reports of telephone scammers looking for donations for local fire departments in Alberta.  In some cases, the callers have been using the name of a local emergency services member to request the donation.  Pincher Creek Emergency Services Commission is not canvasing for donations via telephone. If you receive a call requesting a donation please do not provide a donation.

"It's not always easy to spot a scam," says the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre. "New ones are invented every day. If you suspect that you may be a target of fraud, or if you have already sent funds, don't be embarrassed — you're not alone."

To report a fraud, or for more information, contact the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre at 1-888-495-8501 or at this link. 

Wood Buffalo RCMP warn residents of computer virus cleaner scams

RCMP Alberta  - Wood Buffalo RCMP are advising residents of a computer virus cleaner phone scam that have come to their attention targeting local residents. RCMP advise no legitimate government agency or business will demand payment in gift cards, prepaid credit cards, or using high pressure tactics. These methods are used by the criminal element to hide their activities from police.

Don't fall for CRA scam

RCMP Alberta - Fort Saskatchewan RCMP are reminding residents to not fall for the Canada Revenue Agency scam where aggressive people demand gift card purchases.

RCMP warn of Interac email refund scam

RCMP Alberta - Stettler RCMP has become aware of a 'new' scam involving personal email. A recipient will receive an email that will appear to come directly from Interac advising of a refund owed back to the recipient and provide a deadline to receive the money.

Alberta RCMP warns against binary option scams

RCMP Alberta -  Every year, thousands of Albertans fall victims to fraud, losing millions of dollars. Most people don’t believe it could happen to them, but fraudsters use sophisticated ways to target people of all ages. Last year, there were a total of 8,317 cases of fraud reported in Alberta RCMP jurisdictions from January to October.

Some of the most common scams in Canada in 2016 included:

Nanton RCMP advising of STARS Lottery phone scam

RCMP Alberta - The Nanton RCMP are advising the public of a phone scam where the caller claims to be part of the STARS Lottery.  On March 15 2017 the Nanton RCMP received complaints that a male representing himself as a lottery representative from STARS lottery told people that they were winners of a prize. The caller contacts potential victims and tells them that they need to send money in order to claim the prize. STARS lottery has stated that they do not call and ask for any funds to claim prizes for their lottery.

Door-to-door energy sales: Know your rights

Government of Alberta - Door-to-door sale of energy products and services is against the law in Alberta. Since the ban came into effect on Jan. 1, there have been a number of reports about salespeople misrepresenting themselves to get invited into a customer’s home. This violates Alberta’s consumer protection laws.

Prepaid card scams reported in Cochrane

RCMP Alberta – Over the past few days, Cochrane RCMP have investigated a number of frauds involving prepaid cards.

Victims are being called by unknown individuals claiming to be from different agencies such as ATCO, ENMAX and EPCORE and stating that if the victim does not pay their bill within a short timeframe their utilities will be shut off. The caller then states the victim must buy a set dollar amount of prepaid cards and call them back with the digit code on the back of the prepaid card. The cards being asked to buy are gift cards like iTunes card or gas cards.