New version of bank scam making its rounds in Ontario

With the holidays behind us, scammers are targeting unsuspecting Canadians with a fresh wave of text message scams.

This latest scam begins with either a text message or email from the Royal Bank of Canada, notifying recipients of a “potential issue” and asking them to review their account activity by clicking on a link to “royal client-sign in-en.com.” While the message appears urgent and official, the link redirects to a fake website designed to steal sensitive information.

The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre, a trusted resource in identifying and preventing scams, describes this as a smishing scam—a variation of phishing, but delivered via text messages.

In a typical smishing scam, the CAFC says the culprits may impersonate reputable institutions or companies including banks, online subscription services like Netflix or Amazon, businesses and government departments.

Scammers will then request victims to click on links, download attachments, or fill out forms online. They may also provide instructions on how to scan a QR code.

“Sometimes, if the links are visited, they can infect your computer with viruses or malware,” the CAFC stated on its website.

The CAFC offers the following helpful tips to protect yourself against scams:

• Never click on links in unsolicited text messages or emails.
• Avoid responding to unknown senders or providing personal or financial details over text.
• Verify the legitimacy of messages by contacting the organization directly through official and trusted channels.

To further protect themselves, Canadians are encouraged to block suspicious numbers, delete fraudulent messages, and report any suspected scams to the CAFC or local law enforcement.