Consumer Scams

Although Canadians may feel secure in their knowledge of the dangers of the internet, they are unprepared for and still in fear of future cyber attacks.  That’s what a new RBC study on cyber security reveals. While many Canadians (71%) are aware of cyber criminals and their strategies, over half (47%) are concerned that they…

Since the start of the internet, Cyber criminals have been everything and anything to scam a buck out of you, and they’re REALLY good at it now. With today’s tools and technology, it’s almost impossible for a regular consumer to know they’re in a scam because it’s setup so well. Internet services and websites make…

The first scam we’ll talk about is the biggest, it’s called the Phishing scam. Phishing scams are based on communication made via email or on social networks. Cyber criminals will send you messages and have you click a link to try to trick you into giving them information you would never give them in the…

Ok now that you picked your jaw up from the floor after watching the phishing scam demonstration, you can see how anyone, including me can fall for a scam or a hack like that. Going forward I’ll be teaching you how the scams work, and empower you to spot them and avoid them. So without…

Let’s talk about the greeting card scam. Everyone likes to be thought of. The easiest way was to do it with an e-greeting card. Obviously the scammers caught on and ruined our thoughtfulness fun. This too is an older scam but still works because they can make it look like it came from anyone. Now,…

You’ve heard me talk about it a few times in this course but let’s have a closer look at what this entails.  Picture this: You’ve spent the last few weeks or months working on a high profile project for work and now that you’re finally done, you’re ready to send it in for review. You…

ok let’s talk about the guaranteed bank loan or credit card scam. People are going through difficult financial times at the moment, and could get trapped by “too good to be true” bank offers. These offers claim to guarantee you large amounts of money and have already been pre-approved by the bank. Especially 0% interest…

What about this one? The good ole lottery scam. This one never gets old. The way this scam works is, it comes as an email message informing you that you won a huge amount of money and all you need to do to collect your fortune is to pay some small fees. Lucky you! And…

Have you or anyone you know been fooled by a romance scam?  C’mon you’ve seen the emails. “I’m Yuliana and I’m from the Ukraine and want to get to know you better, here’s my picture.” Kinda email. Well, This scam can take place on social networks such as dating sites, Facebook, or by receiving a…

How about the Fake anti-virus scam? I’m sure we’ve all seen at least one of these message on our screens: “You have been infected! Download this antivirus right now to protect your computer!”. Many of these pop-ups were very well created to resemble actual messages that you might get from Windows or from a normal…

I’m starting to see Facebook impersonation scam more and more these days. This happens when your account gets hacked by a cyber criminal and gaining access to your list of close friends and family. So make sure you watch my video on “how to perform a facebook private checkup” and enable the 2 step verification…

what about the Travel scams. These scams usually appear in the hot summer months or before the short winter vacations like Christmas or New Year’s Day. The scam goes like this, you receive an email containing an amazing offer for an extraordinary hard to get to destination, usually an exotic place. And this offer expires…

Ahhh the good ole Canada Revenue Agency or IRS Collection Scam. This scam angers a lot of people because aggressive telemarketers pretending to represent the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) or the IRS are using aggressive and threatening tactics to scare taxpayers into paying a fictitious tax return debt. You’re then told that you must make…

This Computer Virus Telemarketing Scam is so annoying. Have you ever received a call from “John Smith” with the thick Indian accent pretending to represent Microsoft or Apple, informing you that your computer had been infected with a virus. In order to so call “fix” the problem, you’ll be asked to go to a website,…

Here’s a another one for ya, Smishing. It’s basically means SMS Phishing for short. The way it works is, you’ll receive random text messages on your mobile device in an attempt to lure you into unknowingly agreeing to accept large monthly charges to your credit card or downloading a virus, or malware onto your smart…

Are you using sites like eBay, Amazon, Facebook garage sale or Kijiji? It may not have happened to you, but Consumers that use online second hand shopping and social media sites have found themselves getting ripped off or giving out private information to a stranger. Rip offs usually include misrepresentation of the product, purchasing of…

The Internet is loaded with so many online stores and auction sites marketing alluring, cheaply priced, counterfeit products being pitched as the real thing. Legitimate Gucci handbags and Rolex watches do not come cheap, no matter what the sale price. Before you buy any product online, be sure you know the difference between a real…

This scam usually happens in a business setting. Since this course is about protecting both consumers and businesses, I thought I should at least warn you about this. Usually what happens is that the Chief financial officer will receive an email that looks like it can from the CEO asking the CFO to secretly wire…

This is a nerve wracking scam. Usually elder folks will get a frantic phone call from what appears to be their grandson, or nephew saying they’ve been arrested and need money to bail them out. The phone is then handed off to another person who claims to be the arresting officer. He asks for the…

Ok here’s a scam that can go undetected for 18 years. Let me play for you my TV interview with Breakfast television that fully outlines this crime and why you might need to look into child identity theft protection.

Hey everyone, I wanted to get you up to speed on a very credible scam that was going around before I left for vacation. I must have received about 13 emails and calls from my viewers and one of them who happens to be a friend of mine who calls me up and says, “Terry,…