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Government Letter Scam Targeting Canadians

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Add this one to our long list of scams: some Canadians have received letters (both by email and Canada Post) supposedly from the Canada Revenue Agency indicating they are owed money, but that the government does not have sufficient information on file for them to forward the outstanding amount. A form is included with the letter. Fill in the form, return it and voila, your personal information is handed over to a stranger for the purpose of stealing your identity. Although the letter and T2 form look like photocopies, they look quite legitimate. The RCMP and CRA are warning people these are not from the government.

According to today’s CBC report:

The RCMP said that even with the blurry graphics, people tend to be vulnerable to the scam because of their willingness to believe the government owes them money.

See also: Canada Revenue Agency notice including PDF copy of the scam letter.

Comments

  1. Connie Crosby
    January 14th, 2009 at 12:44 pm

    I finally received my copy! Here is how it reads:

    Canada Revenue Agency
    Online Refund Form

    After the last annual calculation of your fiscal activity we have determined that you are eligible to receive a tax refund of 386.00 CAD.

    Please submit the tax refund and allow us 3-9 days in order to process it.

    A refund can be delayed for a variety of reasons. For example submitting invalid records or applying after the deadline.

    To access the form for your tax refund, please click here>>

    Copyright Canada Revenue Agency. All rights reserved. http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca

    It doesn’t have their logo, although does link back to the official CRA website at the bottom, so does seem legitimate. But it’s not.