Fraudsters are pulling the same scam, with telecommunication companies caught in the crossfire
CAMBRIDGE, ONTARIO– (April 19, 2018) – Fibernetics Corporation is helping educate Canadians to prevent unsuspecting citizens from becoming victims of the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) scam.
It’s one of the most popular scams during tax season: individuals pretend to be calling from the CRA, threatening arrests and legal action unless they receive payment via money order, iTunes gift cards, or bitcoins. The caller often appears to be calling from numbers provided by Canadian telecom companies, but usually, this isn’t the case.
Fibernetics, headquartered in Cambridge, Ontario, is a telecommunication provider that distributes banks of phone numbers using voice over internet protocol (VoIP). Internet-based VoIP enables fraudsters to make calls from computers or tablets, using a technique called “spoofing” to make it look like they are calling within Canada.
“As telephone service providers, it’s our collective responsibility to work together to solve this, and prevent further abuse,” Fibernetics president Francisco Dominguez describes.
During tax season, Fibernetics receives numerous complaints from people claiming they received calls from numbers owned and operated by the company. These claims are usually related to the Canada Revenue Agency scam, warning victims that there will be a warrant issued for their arrest if they do not transfer funds to cover unpaid taxes immediately.
Dominguez further explained, “We’ve been contacted directly by law enforcement and have not only cooperated, but have proactively engaged law enforcement with new information and details of incidents down to the exact date and time.”
Fibernetics takes fraudulent calls very seriously and investigates the claim from their end. However, 9 times out of 10, the call isn’t coming from a Fibernetics customer.
“Fibernetics is eager to dedicate funds and resources toward a unified effort that will help put an end to this activity by working closely with law enforcement to build a system that will keep Canadians safe from this type of abuse.”
Fibernetics strongly encourages anyone who may suspect a scam call to contact the company directly and report it to local authorities if you have been victimized. Fraudulent calls can also be reported through the Fibernetics Nuisance call page or directly to the CRA.
