You may want to think twice before answering your phone.
At least our anonymous source who shared her shocking story with us will. We’ll call her Mrs. X.
It seems in this day in age it’s not safe to divulge much of anything, and this story will help explain why.
On Saturday, June 20, Mrs. X received a call from a man claiming he worked for the Canadian Revenue Agency (CRA). The man, Adam Smith, left his name and number with her husband, a number she didn’t recognize, which would turn out to be the first red flag of many, when she later retold her story to Barrhead RCMP.
The caller, Smith, claimed he was contacting her because of documentation the CRA had sent her that had yet to be filled out and returned.
Smith said they had sent the documents through a postage service, which Mrs. X claims she never received, the second red flag.
Smith said the CRA had a warrant out for the arrest of Mrs. X for taxation fraud, and gave her a warrant number, case number, and the years in question; 2006 to 2013.
The total amount owing was over $2,000.
Mrs. X said she spoke to a number of individuals, all men, who would get snarky when she began asking too many questions.
Although they would not hesitate to ask for her personal information including: date of birth, place of birth, mother’s maiden name, previous addresses, bank loans (if any), and the bank she uses.
They took it one step two far after asking her for the branch she banks with.
Smith, along with his accomplices, have been identified as scam artists, claiming to work for the CRA. These men have been calling residents in the area, saying there is a warrant out for their arrest, and in order to receive a second copy of their documents, they must first fork over private information.
After spending over 30 minutes on the phone, our source hung-up, and called RCMP to find out if there was indeed a warrant out for her arrest. What she heard only clarified what she had already known in her gut, that this was a scam. The officer told her a neighbour of his had also been a victim of the same scam.
After hearing our sources story, it’s no wonder banks ask such a long list of questions only you would know the answer to before giving out any banking information.
One way to tell if it is the CRA is to ask for a badge number, Mrs. X said, adding if they did work for the CRA they should have it readily available.
“It’s scary, and who knows how many more people they are going to get,” she later added.
If you or someone you know has received a similar phone call the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre at 1-888-495-8501 or online at www.antifraudcentre-centreantifraude.ca.
