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By Abby Zieverink

Fraud Prevention Month

Grande Prairie RCMP working to prevent fraud through awareness and education

Mar 7, 2022 | 12:09 PM

As part of fraud prevention month, the Grande Prairie RCMP is providing tips to help prevent people in the community from falling victim to fraud.

Cst. Lindsay Ralph explains that fraud often presents itself in several different ways.

“We try to put out tips and awareness for individuals here in Grande Prairie throughout the month to help people recognize what fraud is and of course to reduce those chances of someone being a victim of fraud.”

She says the best way to prevent fraud is through awareness and education.

“Sharing that information with individuals to let them know that it is a scam and to watch out for it because whether it’s through a phone call, email, or text message; they can be very convincing to individuals.”

Cst. Ralph says taking some extra time to look into emails, messages, and phone calls is crucial to prevent yourself from falling victim to fraud, as fraudsters often use high-pressure tactics to create a sense of urgency in the scam.

“We do want people to protect themselves and take that extra second to analyze that information they are being provided with and maybe fact check it before complying with any information the person might be asking for.”

“If you are speaking to individuals or receiving unsolicited emails or emails containing information that may seem legitimist, taking that extra time to think ‘would I actually be receiving an email from this business or this bank or am I speaking to a legitimate individual?’”

Ralph says there are several resources online where people can look into scams.

“That includes on the Government of Canada’s website and in particular the Canadian Anti Fraud Centre is an excellent resource to get information scams that have existed or currently exist now to look out for.”