Scammers Impersonate Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre to Target Fraud Victims Again

The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (CAFC) has renewed its warning about scammers impersonating centre employees or claiming to be working with the CAFC on official investigations in an attempt to obtain money, financial information or personal details from victims.

The scheme is particularly concerning because some scammers are deliberately targeting people who have already lost money to fraud. They contact previous victims and claim they can recover their stolen funds or that authorities have located the money, before demanding administrative fees, taxes, legal costs, cryptocurrency payments or other transfers.

The CAFC warns that being asked to pay money in order to recover funds previously lost to fraud is itself a major warning sign of another scam.

In another version of the scheme, callers may claim to be fraud investigators from a bank or credit card company. They tell the victim that unauthorized transactions have appeared on an account or that the account has been compromised, then claim the investigation is being conducted in partnership with the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre.

Scammers may also use fake documents, official-looking correspondence or copied government branding to make their claims appear more convincing.

The CAFC stresses that its employees and police officers will not ask people to transfer money, pay fees, disclose passwords or banking verification codes, provide remote access to a computer or phone, or send money as part of a secret investigation.

Canadians who receive an unexpected call of this kind are advised to end the conversation and independently contact their bank or the relevant government agency using official contact information. The centre also warns people not to rely solely on the phone number shown on caller ID, as scammers can manipulate the display to make a call appear to come from a legitimate organization.

Anyone who has already transferred money or provided financial information should immediately contact their financial institution and local police, and report the incident to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre.

The CAFC also encourages people to report attempted fraud even when no money was lost, as these reports help authorities identify emerging scams and track the methods being used by fraudsters.