CRA scam is back - again

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Vernon RCMP are urging the public to be wary of the Canada Revenue Agency scam, which has once again surfaced.

It's back.

Vernon RCMP are urging the public to be wary of the Canada Revenue Agency scam, which has once again surfaced and has been the source of notable increase of victims being defrauded.

“The Vernon RCMP is noting an increase in telephone scams where the caller claims to be from the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA), however is not. These calls are fraudulent and could result in identity and financial theft,” said Const. Kelly Brett.
Recent telephone scams involve the suspect threatening taxpayers or using aggressive forceful language to scare them into paying large fictitious debts to the CRA.

“Victims often received a phone call from a person claiming to work for the CRA or their personal accountant, who say that taxes are owed. The suspect usually requests immediate payment by credit card or will convince the victim to purchase bitcoin and demand they pay the funds immediately at the location requested. The taxpayer is often threatened with court charges, jail or even deportation.”

Recently, the victims have been presented with personal information about family, friends and workplaces, making the caller more believable. Personal information is being gained by the suspect through numerous facets, such as social media and web based accounts. 
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 bitcoins, 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.

“You do not need to call your local RCMP detachment if you have only received a scam phone call. Hanging up the phone is the best course of action you can take. Call your local police only if you have been victimized by the scam,” said Brett.