Canada Revenue tax scam warning issued for Ontario

As tax season approaches, police in Mississauga and Brampton are warning of scammers purporting to be from the Canada Revenue Agency.

Peel Regional Police Fraud Bureau issued a reminder about the common scam today (Jan. 4).

The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) is regularly made aware of scams and says people should be cautious of any communication that claims to be from the CRA, according to the CRA website.

Requests for personal information such as a social insurance number (SIN), credit card number, bank account number, or passport number can be red flags.

These frauds can come via a text message, the mail or a phone call from a person purporting to be from the CRA.

The CRA says there are times when an employee may contact a taxpayer but you can and should verify their identity.

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“A legitimate CRA employee will identify themself when they contact you by phone, providing you with their name and phone number to call them back, if needed,” the CRA says on its website.

People can end the call and verify the employee is from the CRA before providing any personal information.

The only time the CRA sends texts is for a one-time passcode for sign-in services like My Account.

The CRA will never demand immediate payment via an Interac e-transfer, cryptocurrency (Bitcoin), prepaid credit cards, or gift cards from retailers such as iTunes, Amazon, or others.

They also don’t set up meetings in a public place to take a payment from you or use aggressive language or threaten you with arrest, deportation or sending the police.

And the CRA won’t send you an email or text message with a link to your refund, nor will they email or text you a link asking you to click on it or fill in an online form with personal or financial details.

For more information on CRA scams, see the website here.

Canada Revenue Alert!@peelpolice @canantifraud @InspBrennan@CanRevAgency @dk2241#fraudprevention https://t.co/GiglfW7urC

— Peel Regional Police Fraud Bureau (@PRPFrauds) January 4, 2024

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