Scammers really do know every trick in the book.
It isn’t just the promise of cheaper cellphone rates. It can be the lure of romance, the chance to earn a quick buck or get a break on the price of a Taylor Swift concert ticket.
“Their full-time job is scamming money from innocent people,” said Jeff Horncastle, spokesman for the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre, an initiative of the RCMP that tracks fraud, which has been around for 20 years.
“They prey on vulnerabilities; a victim might be in a tough spot with a big bill to pay,” he said.
He said 22 types of scams were used to try to steal money from Manitobans in 2023. The centre’s statistics show 1,009 Manitobans lost $9 million last year. Across Canada, 41,111 were defrauded out of $553.9 million.
Case in point: Olesia Romaniuk thought it was too good to be true when Rogers called to offer a 50 per cent discount on her cellphone bill — and she was right.
Law enforcement classifies that method as a service scam.
Romaniuk said she wants to share her story to prevent people from being duped
“I was so excited to get 50 per cent off my bill,” she said. “I’m on disability and money is tight so I thought this would be wonderful.
“Then he just kept going and I kept giving answers… I began thinking this is probably a scam and I would phone Rogers as soon as I hung up. I did that and they said he had already changed the password so I couldn’t get in and an iPhone had already been ordered.
“Thankfully, I had phoned right away to stop it.”
When it comes to service scams, fraudsters victimized 4,824 Canadians last year, for a total loss of more than $22 million.
In Manitoba, 226 people fell victim to fake service pitches, losing a total of $535,477.
By far, the biggest shakedown was investment scams; 85 Manitobans lost a total of $3.32 million in 2023.
“(Fraudsters) are very good at it. There is a good chance organized crime is behind it,” Horncastle said.
In 2022, 57,578 Canadians were swindled out of $531 million. Even though in total, 16,467 fewer Canadians were ripped off in 2023 than in 2022, the average loss went up.
“It is honestly challenging to pinpoint it,” Horncastle said. “But, with cryptocurrency scams, victims are losing a lot more money.”
For example, 85 Manitobans were tricked into putting money into phoney investment schemes and lost an average of $85,000.
“(Investment scams) have grown exponentially in recent years,” he said, noting that nationally the total loss reached $309 million last year, from $168 million in 2021.
“People don’t know when you google ‘crypto investments’ there’s a good chance the first five or 10 are ad-sponsored ones. While these platforms are legitimate looking, (the bad ones) alter the URL slightly.”
Horncastle said fraudsters reel in people by having them invest a bit of money, and even allowing them to withdraw some when they think they have made a profit.
“As time goes on, they put more and more money in and it’s only two or three months later they realize they were scammed.”
While the chance to fall in love pulls at the heart strings, it can also open the purse strings.
Horncastle said the romance scam is the second-most-popular fraud in Manitoba. Last year, 47 Manitobans were taken for a total of $1.7 million, or about $36,000 each.
“Criminals will match their profiles with people and then they’ll say they are from the area but are working overseas in the military or business,” he said.
“Lots of times they’ll wait months before asking for money. They come up with an emergency: they’ve been mugged and their bank account has been frozen because of the country they are in. They promise to pay the money back, but they don’t.”
Sometimes, the deception involves an online romance in which the victim is encouraged to put money into a fraudulent scheme.
As for the case of Romaniuk, Horncastle said the iPhone would have been mailed to her address. If she phoned the number the scammer left behind, to question why she had received it, she would have been told it was mistake.
“They would say ‘sorry, just send it back.’ The mailing label they sent, wouldn’t go back to (Rogers), it would go to the fraudsters.”
Romaniuk said she is vigilant, but it’s getting tougher to figure out when an offer is legitimate.
“They are getting very good at their shtick. It seemed that everything I’ve been told not to give them, they already had.
“It kind of makes me feel a little less guilty and stupid for not catching it immediately (by) knowing that I wasn’t the only one who fell for it.”
Kevin Rollason
Reporter
Kevin Rollason is one of the more versatile reporters at the Winnipeg Free Press.
Whether it is covering city hall, the law courts, or general reporting, Rollason can be counted on to not only answer the 5 Ws — Who, What, When, Where and Why — but to do it in an interesting and accessible way for readers.
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