Fraud Prevention Month 2023: Tools to Protect Against Scams

The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre recently announced that in 2022 it received fraud and cybercrime reports adding up to $530,000,000 in losses to victims — almost 40% more than in 2021. This whopping amount makes it clear that the internet is becoming a riskier and riskier place, especially when you consider that only a small fraction of fraud is even reported.

Sadly, once fraud occurs it is very hard, if not impossible, to recoup the losses. A consumer’s best tools therefore lie in prevention: knowing how to spot a suspicious deal, an insecure website, or an offer that’s too good to be true will help you be prepared for the worst the web has to offer.

This March, Nova Scotia is joining the Anti-Fraud Centre, the RCMP and Competition Bureau Canada for Fraud Prevention Month 2023 (#FPM2023), as in the coming weeks their Fraud Prevention Forum raises awareness around top scams for 2023 like investment scams, spear-phishing, service scams and phishing.

But first, let’s familiarize ourselves with some of the biggest red flags for scams:

Over the phone

• Scammers will “spoof” phone numbers to make it look like they’re calling from your area or are someone you know. When in doubt, hang up and call back at a number you’ve found independently and separately.
• A key sign that something is up is a sense of urgency. If somebody claiming to be a government officer or security professional tries to rush you through a scenario and won’t give you time to think, alarm bells should go off. Scam artists may call you early in the morning with credit card or IT concerns, requiring your personal information to “secure” your account. They may want you to agree to terms and conditions you don’t fully understand. They may demand immediate payment through strange methods and threaten jail or court proceedings.
• In the same way, scammers will try to play on your emotions. Callers may claim to be law enforcement or family members in dire need, citing sudden medical or legal costs. Lottery scams will rely on your excitement over an unexpected windfall to get you to pay taxes in advance, now. They may demand confidentiality. A new romantic relationship — usually long distance — might quickly turn manipulative, asking you for money to help them move or get them out of a jam, and the scammer may question your devotion if you hesitate.
• Always take some time to think it through and ask yourself if something feels off.

Online

• The era of reliable search engine results is over. Before we see the top results, we often have to scroll past ads, related questions or aggregated Q&As meant to keep us on the results page instead of recommending an external source. But even the top results aren’t necessarily the best. Scammers will disguise a website as a reliable source and promote it to the top of the list. Be on the alert for curious spelling, strange URLs, or attempts to redirect you to yet another site.
• Pop up boxes may prompt you to click through to continue. These have gotten riskier now that many sites pause to ask for consent to use cookies, or to try to get you to subscribe to a publication — we’ve simply gotten used to ignoring them. Malicious pop-ups may tell you you’ve won a prize, or ask you to install software to improve your system. Installing reputable anti-virus and pop-up blockers will help, as will routinely clearing you cache and cookie history.
• It’s a good rule of thumb to never click on a link sent to you in an email, text message or message on social networking sites. Hover over the email address, URL, or any onscreen buttons to see if a suspicious destination shows up. If you do click, never agree to download anything or “confirm” your personal or financial information. If you want to know more, look up the business or organization separately and contact them directly.

Using these recognition tools can you help you be safer in today’s tech-heavy environment. However, if you suspect that you may be or have been a target of fraud, visit the Anti-Fraud Centre to learn more about how to report a scam.

Follow @NSConsumers and #FPM2023 on Twitter all month long to learn more about the tools scammers use and what you can do to spot them.