Follow us on TwitterCharlottetown Police Services wish to inform the public of a Canada Post email scam that has re-surfaced.
The scam involves receiving an email that appears to be from Canada Post. The email does appear legitimate and informs you that they attempted to deliver a package but you were not home and they require additional fees to complete the delivery. The link on the email will direct you to another site with payment options. In the case currently being investigated, the only option that worked was the e-transfer option, to which the victim provided secure banking information. Once this information was provided to the scammers, they were able to access the victims bank account and proceeded to send themselves and e-transfer of 2850.00. The victim also received a scam text message with a verification code after the the initial email and once the secure information had been shared. This text message prompted the victim to look into this further and suspected a possible scam and reported it to Police.
Don’t be a victim:
- Canada Post states on its website that they will not send unsolicited emails
- If they cannot delivery a package, they will leave a notice indicating this at your home
- Delete these type email scams, or if you wish to look into yourself, either contact Canada Post directly or conduct a google search relating to the potential scam and often times there will information relating to that type of scam
What to do if you feel you’ve been a victim of a scam:
- If you’ve provided personal information such as your SIN, banking/credit card and/or sent any money in the form of bitcoin, pre-paid gift cards – Report the fraud to your local Police
- If you did not disclose any personal information or sent money – Report the fraud to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre via their website or by calling 1888-495-8501.
The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre is a good resource to get more information on various frauds and preventative tips. https://www.antifraudcentre-centreantifraude.ca/index-eng.htm