Police warn Mississauga and Brampton residents about possible text scams
Published July 5, 2022 at 3:51 pm
Police are once again alerting Mississauga and Brampton residents to any number of scams that target potential victims by text message.
Numerous fraudulent enterprises operate by contacting people at random via text message, phone calls, emails and through other social media channels, Peel Regional Police say.
The key, authorities stress, to avoid becoming a victim is simply to not respond to any communications from people you don’t know.
And definitely don’t provide any personal information, police say.
A warning posted by Peel police to Twitter today focuses specifically on text messages, and urges people who receive texts from “a random phone number” to not respond.
“…it may be someone trying to gather your personal information for a fraudulent purpose,” police tweeted.
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In some cases, the messages received can seem quite innocent, including a number of scams that simply begin with a “Hi” or “Hello there” text message.
Earlier this year, insauga.com reported on separate incidents in which two people reported receiving suspicious messages via text.
In one case, a woman who lives in Peel said she received multiple texts about a “fund return from a previous bill.”
The text included her phone number and police at the time suspected it was likely a fraudster fishing for a response and personal information.
Around the same time, a Mississauga resident said he received a text message from an unspecified group “giving away $3 million worth of cash prizes” to the community.
Attached was a link with which to join in the supposed good fortune.
The text in question addressed the recipient by his full name and knew he was in Mississauga.
In all such cases, police advise people to not respond and delete the messages, as any response could signal to scammers that your number is active, prompting further spam messages.
People might also want to block the number, police add.
The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre, which keeps track of major scams and frauds throughout the country, advises residents to never share personal or financial information with unverified people or groups.
That includes information such as your:
- name
- address
- birth date
- social insurance number
- credit card or banking information
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If you receive a text message from a random phone number, do not respond as it may be someone trying to gather your personal information for a fraudulent purpose. pic.twitter.com/7878AitB56— Peel Regional Police (@PeelPolice) July 5, 2022