EpicFail
A Mountie became the intended target of a CRA scam while working at the Kelowna RCMP Detachment recently. The scammer then turned hostile and threatened to issue arrest warrants and file lawsuits, after the officer identified himself.
RCMP Cpl. Jesse O’Donaghey says RCMP continues to receive calls from members of the general public, wishing to report this type of CRA scam. It typically involves an unknown caller who claims to be either from the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) or an officer from a law enforcement agency with a warrant out for the potential victim’s arrest.
Hanging up the phone is the best course of action. You do not need to call your local police if you have only received a scam phone call. Only call if you have been victimized by the scam.
RCMP offer the following tips about the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) scam:
- The CRA advises Canadians to confirm the status of their tax accounts before taking any action that may be the result of pressure from suspicious calls or emails, and to verify the legitimacy of the communication by contacting the CRA directly at 1-800-959-8281;
- The CRA will never request prepaid credit cards or iTunes gift cards, and it will not send emails containing details of a tax refund or Interac e-transfer payments;
- The CRA will never ask for information about your passport, health services card or driver’s licence;
- The CRA will never leave personal information on your voicemail service;
- If you've shared personal information, contact Equifax and Trans Union to place fraud alerts on your account;
- If you’ve shared banking information with a scammer, contact your financial institution to place alerts on your accounts
