Police are warning of a big increase in crypto-currency fraud.
Social media is the preferred avenue for fraudsters and getting in touch on WhatsApp seems to be the number one route.
Although their sites may appear authentic, and their efforts to service your account look legitimate, often your money has disappeared the second you send it- and you may not know until you try to cash out weeks or months down the road.
They may even charge you a service fee to access the contents of your empty bitcoin wallet.
Some tell-tale signs include scammers contacting you by using a variety of email addresses and phone numbers; text messages with grammar or spelling mistakes; a salutation like, “Mr. John” instead of Mr. Smith;
and promises that are too good to be true.
A simple way to track a scammer is to let your search engine do the work for you.
Type in the name of the firm, and add the word “scam” to your query and see what comes back.
March is Fraud Prevention Month.
Learn about common scams, what to look for and how to avoid them by checking the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre website.
