Common scams

The scammers committing these cons often follow a similar pattern of behaviour. Look out for red flags, such as:

• They won’t meet you in person or even in a video chat.
• They profess their love and move the relationship forward very quickly.
• Their online profile is bare, with very few interactions with others and few friends/followers.
• There are inconsistencies between what they post on their online profiles and what they tell you.
• They ask for personal or financial information or intimate photos or videos, which can later be used for blackmail.
• They ask for money for things like medical bills, education expenses, phone bills so they can keep talking to you, or travel expenses so they can come see you.
• They claim to be a successful investor and encourage you to invest into cryptocurrency or join a business venture with them.
• Be especially wary of any urgent requests for money or if they begin to act distresses or angry to guilt you into sending money.

• Set your social media accounts to private so strangers cannot access your information and attempt to message you.
• Only accept friend requests and respond to direct messages from people you know and trust.
• If you recently met someone on a dating site, keep all conversation on the same platform and do not overshare (for example, provide your social media account information, phone number, email etc.) 
• Never share intimate photos or videos or any other compromising information.
• Never send money to strangers via etransfer, wire transfer or any other form of money transfer they request. 
• If you suspect you may have fallen for a romance scam, stop all contact immediately. 
• Never delete any messages and keep them for recordkeeping. 

• Provide your local police with as much information as possible.
• Report the incident to Scotiabank (and any other financial institution you may have a compromised account with).
• Immediately put a stop to any outstanding payments.
• Additionally, file a report with your local anti-fraud Centre. For Canadian citizens, contact the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (CAFC) at 1-888-495-8501, or visit the CAFC reporting page for more information. 

When you receive an urgent request or an amazing deal on an item you couldn’t find anywhere else, don’t rush to respond, or make a purchase.

Look for the following warning signs during the holiday season:

• Requests for payment via gift card.
• Urgent calls from family or friends in trouble
• Urgent delivery and invoice notifications with suspicious links or attachments.
• Irregular company colours, logos, or formatting
• Spelling and grammar mistakes.
• Requests from charities pressuring you to provide payment on the spot.
• Charities that accept donation via gift card or wire transfer.
• A free Wifi network name that is almost identical to another one.
• Public Wifi network requiring you to install software to connect.
• Public Wifi networks that do not ask you to opt-in / sign-on to use their connection. 
• Limited time / too good to be true deals.
• Website with the URL “http” instead of “https” (the “s” means the connection is secured) and those that do not display a tiny padlock icon in the address bar.
• Website/apps that:
  • Are missing company information like location, contact, privacy, or return/exchange information.
  • Have aggressive pop-ups
  • Ask for your credit card information anytime other than when you’re making a purchase
  • Have few and/or negative reviews and minimal downloads.

Here are some essential tips to protect yourself from falling for scams during the holiday season:

Be Skeptical
Exercise caution when receiving unsolicited emails, messages, or phone calls, especially if they request personal or financial information. Verify the sender's identity and double-check the information provided.

Verify Authenticity

• Before making any online or gift card purchases, ensure that the website, app and charity is secure and legitimate.
• Avoid clicking on links in unsolicited emails, social posts, and pop-up windows; instead, search for the company in a trusted search engine / app store.
• Look for website that display a tiny padlock icon in the address bar and have “https” in the URL (the “s” means the connection is secured).

Avoid Public Wi-Fi for Transactions
Never conduct financial transactions or look at sensitive information over public Wi-Fi networks, especially those without passwords. Cybercriminals can intercept your data over these unsecured networks.

Check your privacy settings
Review and adjust the privacy settings on your social media accounts. Be cautious about sharing personal information, travel plans, or holiday activities publicly, as scammers often use this information for targeted attacks.

Verify Requests for Money
If a friend or family member asks for money, especially through unconventional methods like gift cards or wire transfers, verify their request through a separate communication channel before taking any action.

Educate Yourself
Stay informed about common holiday scams and tactics used by scammers. Awareness of the latest scams can help you recognize suspicious behavior and avoid falling victim.

Trust Your Instincts
If an offer seems too good to be true or if something feels off, trust your instincts, and proceed with caution. Scammers often rely on your excitement and urgency to compromise your judgment.

• If you’re a Scotiabank customer and believe you’ve been impacted by online fraud, call us immediately at 1-866-625-0561.
• Report all shopping scams to your local police department.
• Report suspicious apps on the app store you’re using.

Call your local anti-fraud centre to report it. For Canadian citizens, contact the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (CAFC) at 1-888-495-8501 or visit the CAFC reporting page for more information.

While some deepfakes and AI scams can be very convincing, there are clues that can help you spot them. Watch out for these red flags:

• Public figures promoting an investment opportunity, such as cryptocurrency or stocks.
• If the deal sounds too good to be true, it probably is – trust your instincts.
• Inconsistencies in lighting, shadows, or reflections.
• Unnatural movements, expressions, or gestures and mismatched lip-syncing.
• Audio inconsistences including background noises that don’t match the environment or unnatural tone and pitch.
• Misaligned or mismatched features, such as eyes, mouth, or teeth.
• Poor quality, blurriness, or glitches.
• Websites that mimic real companies.
• Lack of context, source, or verification.

• Establish a code word with your family and trusted friends, something that is not available on social media. If you receive an unusual voice or video call from them, ask for the code word to validate the legitimacy of the call or reach out to them through a different means of communication to confirm its truly them contacting you.
• If you encounter a deepfake or an AI scam, do not share, like, or comment on it, as this can help it spread further and cause more harm.
• Use tools or websites that can help you verify or debunk suspicious content, such as reverse image search, fact-checking sites, or AI detectors.

• Immediately put a stop to any outstanding payments.
• Provide your local police with as much information as possible.
• Report the incident to Scotiabank (and any other financial institution you may have a compromised account with):
  • If you’re a Scotiabank client and believe you have been impacted by fraud, call us immediately at 1-866-625-0561.
  • If you believe someone is impersonating a Scotiabank representative, send the information to phishing@scotiabank.com.
• Additionally, file a report with your local anti-fraud Centre. For Canadian citizens, contact the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (CAFC) at 1-888-495-8501, or visit the CAFC reporting page for more information.

• Cyber criminals will use various methods to trick you, including:
  • Search engine optimization (SEO)
  • Hacked social media accounts
  • Ads on the internet and social media
  • Email or text message
  • Phone calls from fraudulent crypto investment companies
• Fraudsters will rush you to send money by creating a false sense of urgency, giving you less time to research the legitimacy of the investment.
• Someone you meet on a dating website or social media platform vouches for a specific trading platform and urges you to invest.

• If you receive a suspicious message from a family member or trusted friend, reach out to them through a different means of communication to confirm its truly them contacting you.
• Verify if the investment companies are registered with your Provincial Securities Regulator or browse the National Registration Search Tool.
• Always check for a clear and professional Whitepaper which explain how the cryptocurrency has been designed and how it will work.
• Be cautious of individuals on dating sites or social media platforms who attempt to educate and convince you to invest in crypto currency.
• Never share your digital wallet’s seed phrase. A seed phrase, also known as a recovery phrase, backup phrase, or mnemonic phrase, is a collection of randomized words. Usually consisting of either 12 or 24 words, seed phrases are generated when a user first sets up their digital wallet. The phrase is used to access or recover assets in a cryptocurrency wallet.
• Beware of fraudsters asking you to open and fund new crypto accounts, they will direct you to send it to wallets they control – don’t send.

• If you suspect you’ve been involved in a cryptocurrency scam report it to your local police station and anti-fraud centre. For Canadian citizens, contact the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (CAFC) at 1-888-495-8501 or visit the CAFC reporting page for more information. 
• Change your passwords and usernames (where possible) immediately.

The internet makes searching for jobs easier than ever but be careful of job opportunities that sound too good to be true.

• Be wary of “employers” who reach out to you when you didn't apply for the job
• The emails they use are from generic email accounts rather than company accounts (for example, JohnDoe@gmail.com vs. JohnDoe@legitimatecompany.com)
• The person interviewing you is also managing all the Human Resource onboarding processes
• The job listing is not located on the company website; legitimate companies that use listing platforms to post available job descriptions will also have the job posting on their company website
• You're hired without a proper interview being conducted
• They ask for a money transfer or expect you to pay for equipment up front
• They don't want to meet in person or virtually; regardless of the situation, a company should have safe protocols for a new employee's in-person or virtual onboarding

• When in doubt, reject the job offer and search for opportunities on company websites that you know and trust
• If you find a job posting from a job search website, check if the company has a legitimate website and has the same posting on their site

Call us immediately at 1-866-625-0561 if:

• You receive money from an unknown individual or company, and you're asked to forward it elsewhere
• You receive a cheque or funds deposited to your Scotiabank account in response to a job

Whether you list an online ad for local sale or through a website, scammers will typically:

• Offer to pay more than the requested price
• Ask you to ship items to a different location

If you notice that the potential buyer is acting suspicious, immediately stop talking to them and keep a record of your conversations.

Call us immediately at 1-866-625-0561 if you receive money from an unknown individual or company and are asked to forward it elsewhere.

How can you tell if a contractor may not be reputable? Here are some tactics fraudsters use:

• They knock on your door looking for business because they are in the area.
• They say they have leftover materials from a previous job.
• They ask you to pay everything up front or only accept cash.
• They suggest you borrow money from a lender they know.
• They offer prices for labour or materials that are much lower than market rates/value.
• They promise to complete the work much faster than anyone else.

Be wary of any salespeople offering cheap, speedy services, especially if the service is unsolicited. Here’s some advice to help protect yourself and your money:

• Consider only contractors who are licensed and insured — you can check using official public registries.
• Get contractor recommendations from people you know and trust.
• Read online customer reviews with a critical eye; if all the reviews are too good to be true- they’re likely fake!
• Get multiple written estimates that include a description of the work to be done, materials, completion date and price. Don’t automatically choose the lowest bidder and ask for an explanation if there’s a big difference among the estimates.
• Before signing a contract, make sure everything is written out clearly, like start and finish dates, cost, and understand the scope.
• Don’t let the contractor arrange financing for you. Scammers may try to talk you into taking out home equity loans or reverse mortgages to pay for repairs and arrange for the lender to pay them directly.
• Don’t pay the full amount for the project up front and never pay in cash.

Keep track of all conversations, letters, and documents. Make sure to document all phone conversations by following-up with an email which you can retain as evidence.

If you are not able to resolve the issue with the contractor, report it to your local police station and anti-fraud centre. For Canadian citizens, contact the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (CAFC) at 1-888-495-8501 or visit the CAFC reporting page for more information.