A potential scammer’s text to an off-duty Barrie police officer this week has officials ringing the alarm bells in an effort to protect city residents.
The text sent to the officer’s cellphone claimed to be from her son or daughter using a cashier’s phone after their phone had broken and that they’d had to purchase a new one.
“She stopped for a second and thought (it) couldn’t be real. She called her family member and confirmed that it was definitely a hoax,” said Peter Leon, the department’s communications co-ordinator.
This is the first time this type of scam has been seen by Barrie police, he confirmed. And although they hope it will be the last, city police wanted to warn residents in case it’s the newest trend in telephone and text scams.
“This could be the newest scam of the holiday shopping season,” warned Leon. “You need to do your due diligence and inquire first before you hit send.
"We always tell people, if you don’t recognize the sender of an email, don’t open it and don’t put yourself in a situation where you could become their next victim," he added. "The same with text messages. Just because you got the message on your phone doesn’t mean it’s true, accurate or right.”
Fraudsters and scammers are always out there and trying to come up with new ways and new ideas to defraud people, Leon added.
“At this time of year, your money belongs with you and not with an opportunistic thief,” he said.
