March is Fraud Prevention Month

Fraud Prevention Month is March. In Canada, a good source of up-to-date information is the Little black book of Scams from Industry Canada. Keep yourself informed to prevent becoming one of the many thousands of victims of fraud each year; be sure to share tips with vulnerable friends and family members; and if you have children, remember to protect their personal information and documents.

If you have been scammed:
Report it to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre online
​or call them toll-free: 1-888-495-8501

Alerts and Tips to Avoid Fraud and Identity Theft: 

• Romance scams (in 2016, 748 victims lost over $17 million)
• Canada - ItPaysToKnow.gc.ca 
• Gov't of Canada - protection from frauds and scams 
• What to do if you are a victim of identity theft
• Real Estate fraud: types of and prevention tips  
• Small businesses fraud prevention tips (youtube video) 
• Canada - Get Cybersafe tips for online safety
• Avoid investment fraud - BeFraudAware.ca and CheckFirst.ca 
• (US) FTC Scam alerts - (in english and español)
• Report international scams online and/or make consumer complaints 
• ScamTracker interactive map to report and track new scams (BBB)
• Real life examples of fraud at ConsumerProtectionBC.ca ---1-888-564-9963

Simple Fraud Prevention Tips:

• Don't carry all your ID in your wallet or purse;
• Don't have cheques mailed to you; it is safer to pick them up from your financial institution instead;
• Cancel credit cards you don’t use and shred offers that come in the mail;
• Check credit card & bank statements regularly;
• When on vacation, check your accounts for any signs of fraud;
• Assume any 'urgent' email or phone call is a scam. If you are being pressured to act quickly, or to send any account, financial or personal information ––put on the brakes, step back, and take time to double check everything; 
• Beware of fake online job or rental postings. Does something seem too good to be true? Does it seems a super opportunity and you are rushing not to miss it? Again, put on the brakes, and double check that it is not a scam. 
• Learn about ways to protect and track your mobile device(s);
• Get a free credit report done once a year (you have the right to a free copy without a monthly fee. Ask for your Consumer Disclosure / Credit Report from Transunion.ca 1-800-663-9980 or Equifax.ca 1-800-465-7166 ); 
• If you lose your ID, ask TransUnion about putting a notice on your file. Also be sure to ask them how this might impact you.​

Help any seniors you know avoid fraud by reading this 2015 Seniors' Toolkit (PDF). Here is a graph from the report showing the huge losses of Canadian seniors by fraud type.