You receive an email congratulating you on winning the grand prize in a contest you never entered.

Beware – it’s probably a scam!

Phone, internet and email scams are on the rise and criminals are getting smarter in how they trick people into giving money or personal information, and they are creating more clever ways to avoid detection.

Operations Supervisor at the Turtle Mountain RCMP Detachment, Corporal Beveridge, says we need to be aware of the scams that are out there, and to be wary of phone calls and emails that raise a red flag. “These are undetectable crimes,” she states.

“With technological advancements creates new and improved scams by the fraudsters. A large majority of these scams are undetectable by police. We have information of 9 mail scams, 47 internet scams, 35 phone scams and 31 email scams,” explains Cpl Beveridge. “We want to tell the public not to give out any personal information, your S.I.N. (Social Insurance Number), your date of birth, even your name.”

The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre website gives details of these scams and is also the place to report a scam. “That’s where our statistics come from and our knowledge of what we can provide to the public of what’s happening. The police cannot help you get your money back if you have been defrauded. Like I said, these are undetectable crimes,” she adds.

“The fraudsters know that winning prizes and offering large ticket items at such a reduced cost is going to bait a lot of people, particularly the elderly portion of our community.”

Cpl Beveridge lists some of the more popular scams that are currently being used to target their victims:

The Microsoft Scam, an online scam where the fraudster tells you that you have a virus and they request remote access to your computer.

The Inheritance Scam, where you’re told you are the recipient of a large inheritance. The victim will be required to give money to secure their cash award.

The Romance Scam, where the fraudster often poses as a male military employee working overseas. He targets widows or single women and gains their trust by making them feel like they are in a very dedicated relationship so they will send him money.

The Apple iTunes Scam, where people are targeted and forced to buy Apple iTunes cards and provide the numbers on the card to the fraudsters.

The Service Canada Scam, where people receive the phone call and are threatened that they will be arrested if they don’t pay or provide personal information.

Cpl Beveridge warns to take notice of emails that you don’t recognize – and treat it like a scam email. “Just flag it, do not open it up, do not respond, you haven’t won anything. And, if you get calls that seem like a scam, it is more likely a scam, but don’t be pressured into listening to any sales tactics, just hang up.”

“These are all red flags, and I encourage everyone who has access to a computer to go on the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre website,” she shares. “It lists all of the mail scams, internet, email and phone scams in detail. It’s all on this website and that is very valuable. It will tell you how to protect yourself and what to do if you have been scammed.”

“Be careful, even on Facebook,” she adds. “Everyone is on Facebook now and they think it’s a lot of fun to provide 20 personal questions and share with all your friends but what you’re actually doing is giving out personal information. I’d be very careful about what you’re sharing, even photographs or any sort of personal information. Facebook is its own entity, and we can’t monitor Facebook.”

If you receive a phone call from your bank that your credit card has been compromised, or that its important that you call back on the provided phone number, be aware that this may be a scam. If you are unsure if this is truly your bank, phone the number on the back of your credit card, not the one that was provided to you in the voice mail message.

“If you have your own personal banking, you can probably count the number of times that your bank has contacted you and usually it's because there has been a large purchase that has been made,” she explains. “So, you can confirm or there will be a red flag on your record.”

“But, do not ever disclose the 3-digit number on the back of your [credit] card unless you’re making online purchases,” she adds, “and also with online purchases, we have Facebook, we have Online Marketplace, we have Kijiji, do not ever send money as a deposit without having eyes on the item that you want to buy and getting confirmation of the seller’s identification. If somebody is a legitimate seller, they probably wouldn’t mind you taking a picture of their driver’s license.”

“But, if someone is unwilling to do that, the purchase may be too good to be true and you should find your purchase elsewhere.”

Visit the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre website for more information, and to report a scam: