There are thieves out there who will first try to scare you and then tell you how to solve your tax problem. Hang up on them.

Crime 100By Staff

July 28, 2017

BURLINGTON, ON

 

In the last week Halton Regional Police Service have seen another variation of the commonly known CRA scam.
Victims are being told that they have outstanding debt with the CRA and in order to avoid arrest they are now being directed to local “BITCOIN” ATM machines to deposit cash funds into anonymous digital wallets, thinking that they are paying off the alleged debt and avoiding arrest.

HRPS crestInvestigation into one such digital wallet revealed that 17 deposits had been made in one 24hr period, with an equivalent amount being $11,900 dollars USA. The source of all these deposits is not known, but police suspect they are all victims to fraud related scams.

Many people will have no idea what a “digital wallet” is. The cardinal rule is that if it doesn’t sound right to you – then it is probably wrong. If in doubt – don’t.

The Halton police would like to again warn the public about the CRA scam and remind them that the CRA would never ask for payment to be made through gift cards or Bitcoin and would never use the phone as a first point of contact when dealing with clients.

If contacted by the CRA in such a manor police recommend hanging up the phone, and if in any doubt to source the true number for the CRA and make your own enquiries about the status of your account. Do not call the caller back on any phone numbers that they themselves have provided you.

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1 comment to There are thieves out there who will first try to scare you and then tell you how to solve your tax problem. Hang up on them.

  • steve

    How can anyone who knows what bitcoin is be fooled by this. How foolish to you have to be to think the CRA would use bitcoin?