**** RCMP Media Release
RCMP warn of phone scams involving gift cards and cheques
In the past 24 hours, Halifax District RCMP has received three complaints of fraudulent phone scams in the Halifax Regional Municipality.
On February 9, 2022, a woman received two cheques by mail, totaling $9,000.00, which appeared to be legitimate. The information received stated that the woman had won a prize from Readers Digest but was required to send back $4,000.00 to obtain a certificate of ownership. The fraud was prevented when the bank the woman attended recognized the scam.
On February 7, 2022, a woman received a call from someone claiming to be a bank employee. The caller stated that her credit card had been breached. The woman was asked to assist in the investigation by purchasing Joker Mastercards from different retailers and to use different cashiers. The woman was then instructed to provide the information from the cards purchased. The fraudster obtained over $8,000.00.
On February 2, 2022, a woman received a call from someone claiming to be from Publisher’s Clearing House. The caller informed the woman that she had won a prize but needed to pay taxes to claim it. The caller instructed the woman to mail Visa gift cards to an address outside of Nova Scotia. The fraudster did obtain $1,500.00 from the woman.
Police are reminding the public to protect themselves against frauds in the following ways:
- Do not send money, gift cards, Bitcoin or anything else of value to someone you’ve never met in-person.
- If you have a feeling that something is not right, it is best to trust your gut and stop communicating with that person.
Scammers can be very persistent and convincing. Being defrauded is never the victim’s fault. If you have been defrauded, you are not alone. Please report it to your local police.
