March is Fraud Prevention Month, which means watchdogs and government officials are working overtime to warn the public of all the ways they can avoid getting caught up in fraudulent activity and becoming victims.
The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre is warning residents about fake emails being sent to tenants claiming to be their landlords asking for payments via e-transfer or other types of unusual payment methods.
The organization took to Twitter on Monday and even shared an example of the fake email.
This is just the latest scam reported this week alone.
Peel Regional Police also warned the public about a home repair scam where a stranger shows up to your house and tries to convince you your home needs some fixing up.
Authorities said to avoid signing anything and to not hand over any money.
The government has also recently warned Canadians about some of the most common scams seen so far.
The Competition Bureau Canada tweeted on Monday that people should beware of three types of scams that cost people the most last year.
“Equip yourself with the tools to recognize, reject, and report fraud,” it said.
Scams come in all shapes and sizes, and one TikTok user proved it after sharing her wild story this month.
In a viral video that has already racked up seven million views, user @Bethroyce said that she had the scare of her life when she got scammed out of money for believing her sister was abducted.
“It was her contact, her face…it looked exactly like my sister was calling,” she said in the video.
After picking up what she believed to be her sister’s call, she knew something was wrong when a man on the other line shouted at her not to call anyone else for help and that he abducted her sister.
She claims she even heard muffled cries coming from a woman heard in the background.
It turned out to be a scam after confirming her sister was safe and unharmed.
The woman said she’s usually good at spotting fraudulent activity but this scam was on an entirely different level.
Toronto police told Now Toronto that although nothing like this has ever been reported in the city, it is still a known tactic.
Their advice? Hang up.
“Validate the claim yourself by looking up the real number of the purported caller and calling the real number, or in this case, calling your sister from a different phone,” they said.
