Police warn of new scam using gift cards
Calgary police are warning Calgarians about a new twist on an old scam.
On Friday, a Calgary woman got a message from a man calling himself Ryan Smith, claiming to be from the Canada Revenue Agency.
When she called back, the woman was shocked when Smith told her she owed nearly $10,000 in back taxes. The woman said she was transferred back and forth between a number of people, claiming she would be arrested if she didn’t pay the debt immediately.
In reality, the call from Smith was the first step in a gift card scam.
The latest victim is an elderly woman, whose name has been withheld, suffering from a number of health issues, including a traumatic brain injury. When she first got the call from Smith, the victim said she was in a panic because of her condition. But looking back now, she said it was obvious the call was part of a scam.
“Being a person like me, it took me way over the top and I feel so stupid,” the woman said. “And I’m not like that, I’m not a stupid person.”
The victim said the men on the other end of the phone told her to visit a number of grocery stores and purchase iTunes gift cards to pay her debts. The woman said she was instructed to “not tell anyone” at the stores what she was doing and to keep the alleged scammers on a cellphone while she bought the cards.
In total, the woman gave scammers the codes for $9,900 worth of iTunes cards.
Police said victims are told to purchase gift cards and give the activation codes to scammers. The codes for the cards are then sold on the black market.
Calgary police confirmed that between June 1 and July 21 victims lost over $132,000 in scams using the iTunes gift card method.
Police have tips for Calgarians to protect their pocketbooks from scammers:
Government agencies never ask for payment via gift cards or prepaid credit cards. If your workplace sells gift cards, be on the lookout for potential victims and inform them about this scam. Victims may be on the phone and purchasing a large amount of gift cards. If you are contacted and told you owe money, look up the numbers online and do not use the numbers provided to you by the potential scammer. Do not feel pressure to provide any money until you’ve determined if the debt is real. Talk to trusted friends and family because legitimate requests will not be that urgent. If you have lost money, call police at 403-266-1234. If you received a phone call or e-mail that you believe to be a scam, report it online at www.calgarypolice.ca
As for the recent victim, she hopes her story will help prevent other people with disabilities from falling for similar schemes.
“I have a mental condition and I’m screwed in my head and now I’m screwed in my bank account, too,” she said. “I’ve worked hard all of my life, and for somebody to do that to you is devastating."