As part of Fraud Prevention Month, the Kingston Police are providing some tips to stay safe.
They say that the most common contact method by fraudsters is through a direct call.
This could be through automated dialing, robocalls, “spoofing” their phone number, or by disconnecting the call.
Some of their tips to avoid being scammed over the phone include hanging up on recorded messages, never giving out personal or financial information over the phone unless you initiated the call, letting calls from unknown numbers go to your answering machine and registering your phone number with Canada’s National Do Not Call List (https://lnntedncl.gc.ca/en)
They emphasize that caller ID information can be spoofed and that you should always ask questions.
If the called cannot or will not answer, hang up.
If you believe you or someone you know may have been the victim of fraud, you can reach out to the Kingston Police or you can call the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre.
